Crawford County’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dipped to 3.8 percent for September, down from a revised 4 percent for August, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
September’s rate of 3.8 percent is a half-percentage point below the 4.3 percent recorded in September 2022.
Crawford County’s total labor force was at 37,400 in September with 35,900 employed and 1,400 unemployed (the numbers don’t total correctly due to rounding). August’s total labor force was larger at 37,700 with 36,200 employed and 1,500 unemployed.
A county’s total labor force is the number of people who live in a county and are in the workforce either employed or unemployed but may work in another county.
The total number of jobs based in Crawford County grew by a net total of 300 from August to September, going from 29,900 in August to 30,200 in September with the gains in three education-related sectors, according to Dave Hand, a labor analyst the Department of Labor and Industry.
Trade, transportation and utilities sector added 200 jobs in September, rising to 4,600, compared to 4,400 in August with those jobs related to transportation, such as bus services.
Education and health services sector had 6,400 jobs in September, up 100 from 6,300 in August.
Local government sector added 200 jobs in September, rising to 2,600 jobs, up from 2,400 in August.
Jobs in the education and health services and local government sectors were related to faculty and support staff returning to work with the start of the 2023-2024 academic year, said David Hand, a state labor analyst.
Two other job sectors reported losses of 100 each in September.
Leisure and hospitality fell to 2,600 in September, down from 2,700 in August as some seasonal businesses started to close.
Employment in manufacturing was at 7,100 for the month, down from 7,200 in August. However, the drop may be due to rounding, Hand said.
At 3.8 percent in September, Crawford County was in a four-way tie with Lackawanna, Lehigh and Lycoming counties for the 35th-lowest rate out of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties.
Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates for the four counties adjoining Crawford all saw slight changes in their rates in September.
Erie, Mercer and Warren counties each had small decreases in the month while Venango County had a small increase.
The rates for the other counties, listed September, then August, are: Erie — 4.1 percent, 4.2 percent; Mercer — 3.9, 4.0; Venango — 4.5, 4.4; and Warren — 3.7, 3.9.
Pennsylvania’s September unemployment rate was 3.4 percent, down from 3.5 percent in August.
Nationally, the unemployment rate was 3.8 percent in September, unchanged from August.
