LINCOLN - Nebraska’s preliminary unemployment rate for January 2024 is 2.5 percent, seasonally adjusted. The rate was unchanged from the revised December 2023 rate of 2.5 percent and is up 0.4 percentage points from the January 2023 rate of 2.1 percent.  Nebraska was ranked fifth in the nation. National unemployment rate rankings are available here: bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm.   

“Nebraska’s labor force grew by 5,111 from January 2023 to January 2024,” said Commissioner of Labor John H. Albin. “The number of employed workers increased by 1,019 over the year.”

Nonfarm employment, a count of filled jobs, was 1,038,283 in January, down 23,840 over the month.  Private industries with the most growth month to month were financial activities (up 413 jobs) and information (up 247 jobs). Benchmarked nonfarm employment data will be published on Mach 22, 2024, at which time comparisons to 2023 data will be available. 

The counts of employed and unemployed in the labor force are based on a survey conducted by the Census Bureau regarding employment status. Both individuals who are claiming unemployment benefits and those who are not claiming can be counted as unemployed based on their survey responses.  Individuals who are not working and are not seeking work are not considered part of the labor force and are not included in the unemployment rate calculation.

The national seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for January 2024 is 3.7 percent, unchanged from the December 2023 rate. The rate is up 0.3 percentage points from the January 2023 rate of 3.4 percent.

Employment data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and NDOL are subject to revisions monthly and annually. For more information, visit www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cestn.htm#section7.

Data Release Schedule:

March 11, 2024: Statewide labor force benchmarked data and January 2024 preliminary labor force and nonfarm employment data

March 22, 2024: February 2024 preliminary and January 2024 revised labor force and non-farm employment data; 2019-2023 non-farm employment benchmarked data

April 19, 2024: March 2024 preliminary and February 2024 revised labor force and non-farm employment data; 2019-2023 labor force sub-state benchmark data 

Employers looking for qualified applicants are encouraged to post their jobs for free on NEworks.nebraska.gov and partner with their closest job center to take advantage of programs geared at recruiting, upskilling, and expanding their workforce.

More employment data is available at dol.nebraska.gov/INFOlink.  NDOL press releases are accessible here: dol.nebraska.gov/PressRelease.