St. Paul – Minnesota's unemployment rate inched down two-tenths of a percent to 2.8% in March 2023 from February, and the labor force participation rate stayed the same over-the-month at 68.0%, according to new data from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). Nationally, the U.S. unemployment rate ticked down one-tenth of a percentage point to 3.5% and the labor force participation rate ticked up one-tenth of a percent to 62.6%.

Minnesota lost 5,700 jobs, down 0.2%, from February to March on a seasonally adjusted basis. The private sector lost 6,100 jobs, down 0.2%. Government jobs grew by 400 in Minnesota over the month, offsetting some of the losses in the private sector. The U.S. total nonfarm employment increased by 236,000 jobs, up 0.2% from February to March. The U.S. private sector gained 189,000 jobs, up 0.1%.

"A decline in the unemployment rate is good news for Minnesota," said DEED Temporary Commissioner Kevin McKinnon. "While a decline in the number of jobs and no change in the labor force participation rate may seem like a bit of a disconnect, the data trends will even out over time."

Over the month, five supersectors in Minnesota lost jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis: 

• Construction lost 1,900 jobs, or 1.4%
• Manufacturing lost 1,300 jobs, 0.4%
• Trade, Transportation, and Utilities lost 2,300 jobs, 0.4%
• Professional & Business Services lost 1,200 jobs, 0.3% 
• Other Services lost 700 jobs, 0.7%

Three supersectors did not change over-the-month:

• Mining and Logging 
• Information
• Financial Activities

Three supersectors saw positive growth over the month:

• Educational and Health Services gained 600 jobs, 0.1%
• Leisure and Hospitality gained 700 jobs, 0.3%
• Government gained 400 jobs, 0.1%

Over the year in Minnesota, Minnesota gained 64,139 payroll jobs, up 2.2%, over the year. The private sector gained 55,386 jobs, up 2.3% over the year. All supersectors posted positive annual growth except Mining & Logging, which lost 102 jobs, or -1.6%. Following are noteworthy changes over the year:

• Leisure & Hospitality gained 19,392 jobs, up 8.2%
• Information gained 1,458 jobs, or 3.3%
• Education & Health Services gained 14,639 jobs, up 2.7%
• Construction gained 1,621 jobs, or 1.4%

U.S. employment grew 2.7% over the year, with the private sector up 2.8%. All supersectors showed gains over the year at a stronger rate than Minnesota except three: Trade, Transportation, & Utilities; Information; and Leisure & Hospitality.

In Minnesota, average hourly wages for all private sector workers fell 15 cents to $35.16 in March 2023 over the month; over the year, average hourly earnings jumped $1.52 – up 4.5% – and since March 2020 they are up 11.4%. Nationally, private sector wages fell 3 cents over the month but increased 4.2% over the year and 14.6% over three years. The Consumer Price Index, a common measure of inflation, rose 5.0% over the year in March. and 16.9% over three years.

Minnesota and U.S. Employment and Unemployment – March 2023 

Minnesota unemployment rate by race and ethnicity (12-Month Moving Averages) – March 2023 

Source: Current Population Survey Demecon, 12-month moving averages. This data is volatile because of the small sample sizes. Monthly data is currently only available for the listed racial and ethnic groups.

Minnesota and U.S. Over-the-Year (OTY) Employment Change, Not Seasonally Adjusted – March 2022-March 2023

Minnesota Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Over-the-Year (OTY) Employment Change, Not Seasonally Adjusted (NSA): March 2022 - March 2023

Over the Year Job Growth – February MSAs Released by Other States, Employment Change, Not Seasonally Adjusted (NSA): February 2022 -February 2023

Note that March data for some Minnesota communities that border the state will be updated by the government agency in the neighboring state. DEED can only share publicly available information at the time of this release for these MSAs:

Visit the DEED website to access DEED's alternative measures of unemployment. You can also find monthly jobs numbers and unemployment data on DEED's website. In addition, obtain related articles about job growth and labor market changes in the latest issue of Minnesota Employment Trends. Access resources to help Minnesotans prepare for and find employment now can be found at CareerForceMN.com/GoodJobsNow.