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Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted preliminary June 2024 unemployment rate was 4.6 percent, according to data released Thursday by the Kentucky Center for Statistics, an agency within the Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet.

The preliminary June 2024 jobless rate was unchanged from both April and May 2024 but is up 0.5 percentage points from one year ago.

The U.S. seasonally adjusted jobless rate for June 2024, meanwhile, was 4.1 percent, which was up from the four percent recorded for May 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Kentucky’s civilian labor force was 2,047,682 in June 2024, an increase of 6,945 individuals from May 2024. The number of people employed in June rose by 6,868 to 1,952,975 while the number who were unemployed went up by 77 to 94,707.

“Kentucky labor force continued to grow in June,” said University of Kentucky’s Center for Business and Economic Research Director Mike Clark. “While more people entering the labor force might be expected to push the unemployment rate up as more workers compete for jobs, the Commonwealth’s unemployment rate has held steady at 4.6 percent for the third month. This occurred because people are finding work at roughly the same rate as they are entering the workforce.”

In a separate federal survey of business establishments that excludes jobs in agriculture and people who are self-employed, Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment increased by 2,100 jobs to 2,044,900 in June 2024 compared to May 2024. Kentucky’s nonfarm employment was up 25,700 jobs or 1.3 percent compared to June 2023.

“Kentucky’s employers continued adding workers to their payrolls in June,” said Clark. “While the rate of job growth has slowed from recent months, month-to-month employment changes are fairly volatile. So, this does not necessarily reflect a change in the trend.”

Kentucky’s statewide unemployment rate and employment levels are seasonally adjusted. Employment statistics undergo sharp fluctuations due to seasonal events, such as weather changes, harvests, holidays and school openings and closings. Seasonal adjustments eliminate these influences and make it easier to observe statistical trends.