Nev. unemployment dips to 5.4 percent

September’s unemployment rate dipped to just 5.4 percent using just the raw data that compares directly with the local markets around the state. The seasonally adjusted rate was a bit higher at 5.8 percent.

Gov. Brian Sandoval said that means Nevada has regained the 186,000 jobs lost during the recession.

Bill Anderson, chief economist for the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, said the state has now exceeded national job gains for 50 consecutive months.

For the three major population centers, unemployment fell four tenths of a point. That put both Carson City and Las Vegas at 5.6 percent and Reno/Sparks to 4.5 percent by the end of September.

Statewide unemployment is down to just 83,600 out of 1.43 million in the labor force.

For Carson City, there were just 1,380 jobless in a labor force of 24,700. Over the course of September, governmental employment remained steady in the capital as did manufacturing. The gains were reported in private service categories including trade, transportation and business services.

In Reno-Sparks, total employment increased nearly 2,800 to 224,900 with a small gain in construction jobs but most of the additions in service categories.

In the Las Vegas reporting area, the public sector reported the most prominent gains as the state and local governments added more than 3,000 jobs. Those additions were offset by a series of slight reductions in a number of other service categories.

Churchill County reported a substantial improvement with the unemployment rate there dropping seven tenths of a percent to 5.1 percent. That equates to 523 workers seeking a job out of 10,327 in the labor force. That’s a full 2 percent decrease since January.

Douglas County’s rate dipped below 5 percent in September to 4.9 percent or 1,112 out of 22,525 workers.

In Lyon County, the rate is still among the state’s highest at 6.76 percent. But that’s six tenths down from August and nearly 3 percent lower than the 9.5 percent Lyon had in January.