Kansas Unemployment Steady at 3.8% in April; Modest Job Gains Led by Public Sector

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Kansas’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held steady at 3.8% in April, according to preliminary estimates from the Kansas Department of Labor and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This rate is unchanged from March but slightly higher than April 2024’s 3.4%. The state’s labor force participation rate also remained unchanged at 67.1%.

Kansas added 1,400 nonfarm jobs in April, with gains concentrated in the private sector. Private employers added 1,500 jobs, while government employment dipped by 100. The professional and business services sector saw the largest increase with 2,500 new jobs, while private education and health services experienced the biggest loss, shedding 600 positions.

Over the past year, total non-farm employment has grown by 2,800 jobs. This reflects a decline of 700 jobs in the private sector and an increase of 3,500 jobs in government. These changes suggest modest overall job growth in the state, driven largely by public sector employment.

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