FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DAYTON, OH – This morning the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics issued employment data for the month of March.

The national unemployment rate in March was 3.8 percent. However BARRYSTAFF president Doug Barry says special attention should be paid to labor force participation rate.

According to the federal government, the labor force participation rate is 63 percent and there hasn’t been much improvement over the past 12 months. The employment-population ratio was 60.6 percent in March and has been either 60.6 percent or 60.7 percent since October 2018.

“The labor force participation rate is basically people who are either working, or looking for work,” Barry said. “Too many people have checked out, and quit looking for jobs.

“The jobs are there,” he continued. “What this means is people aren’t finding the type of work they have in mind. And that’s a concern.”
Manufacturing employment did not change much. In the 12 months prior to February, the manufacturing industry added an average of 22,000 jobs per month. Within the industry, employment in motor vehicles and parts declined in March (-6,000).

BarryStaff is an award-winning employment agency that hires workers for more than 100 employers throughout the Miami Valley. The majority of them are in manufacturing.

In March, employment in food services and drinking places continued its upward trend (+27,000), in line with its average monthly gain over the past year.

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