- The most recent jobs report showed that in December 2022, Maryland lost a total of 200 Total Nonfarm jobs.
- The official unemployment rate for Maryland decreased to 4.0 percent.
According to the most recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Maryland lost a total of 200 Total Nonfarm jobs in December 2022. This was the result of a loss of 600 Total Private jobs, offset by a gain of 400 Total Government jobs. Despite very little change in the overall jobs figures, the unemployment rate decreased to 4.0 percent in December.
Between November and December, the largest subsector gain occurred in Construction, with an increase of 2,300 jobs. This was followed by Other Services, which added 1,600 jobs, and Health Care and Social Assistance, which increased by 1,200 positions. The most significant losses were seen in Retail Trade and in Information, which lost 1,200 jobs and 1,000 jobs over the month, respectively.
Following this month’s jobs report, Maryland improved to 35th among all states in unemployment rate. Maryland’s decrease of 0.3 percentage points between November and December was the largest decrease in the unemployment rate seen by any state in December, even though the state had very little change in the overall number of jobs. Instead, the change in the unemployment rate was due almost entirely to people dropping out of the labor force, as unemployment dropped by nearly 10,000 persons with barely any increase in employed persons. This suggests that the change in unemployment is not as promising for Maryland’s future as it first appears.
Between continued inflation, increasing interest rates, and the ongoing effects of both the COVID-19 pandemic and war in Ukraine, Maryland’s immediate economic future remains uncertain. With the situation evolving quickly, stay tuned for more updates on how employment is changing across Maryland, the region, and the country.
