State: Carson City within 700 jobs of pre-virus employment levels

Carson City has added 600 jobs since August, bringing the capital to within 700 jobs of pre-COVID employment levels.

According to the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, 500 of those jobs were in the government sector.

However, the capital is still some 400 jobs behind where it was in September 2019. Carson’s unemployment rate is 6.8 percent with 1,798 seeking work in a pool of 26,455.

The Reno reporting area saw an increase of just 100 jobs since August. Compared to September 2019, Reno is down 13,100 jobs, more than a third of them — 5,500 — in the leisure and hospitality sector. The jobless rate in the Reno reporting area is down to 6.7 percent in a labor pool of 252,402.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Reporting Area is still struggling. Las Vegas employment decreased 1,400 jobs compared to August. Unemployment there remains in double digits.

Statewide, Nevada has added back 3,400 plus jobs since August, the fifth month in a row that the number of those employed has increased. But, statewide, Nevada is still down 127,600 jobs compared to September 2019. The vast majority of those without jobs are in the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area.

Dave Schmidt, chief economist for DETR, said many of Nevada’s smaller reporting areas are seeing unemployment rates returning much closer to normal.

Fallon’s rate (Churchill County) is 4.7 percent and Elko is 4.3 percent.

In Douglas County, the rate is 6.8 percent for September.