LINCOLN - The Nebraska Department of Labor (NDOL) announced today that Nebraska’s preliminary unemployment rate for September 2024 is 2.7 percent, seasonally adjusted. The rate is unchanged from the August 2024 rate and is up 0.2 percentage points from the September 2023 rate of 2.5 percent.  Nebraska's rate is ranked fifth lowest in the nation. National unemployment rate rankings are available here: bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm.   

“The manufacturing sector in Nebraska has been steadily growing, with manufacturing non-farm employment up 4,333 jobs in September compared to a year ago,” said Commissioner of Labor John H. Albin.  

The counts of employed and unemployed in the labor force are based on a survey conducted by the Census Bureau regarding employment status. Individuals who are claiming unemployment benefits and those who are not claiming unemployment benefits 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.

Nonfarm employment, a count of filled jobs, reached 1,078,646, up 7,751 over the month and up 24,152 over the year. Private industries with the most growth month to month were private education and health services (up 1,159 jobs); information (up 140 jobs); and manufacturing (up 96 jobs). Private industries with the most over-the-year growth were private education and health services (up 8,364 jobs); manufacturing (up 4,333 jobs); and trade, transportation, and utilities (up 3,502 jobs).

The national seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for September 2024 is 4.1 percent, down 0.1 percentage points from the August 2024 rate of 4.2 percent and up 0.3 percentage points from the September 2023 rate of 3.8 percent.

October 2024 Nebraska employment data will be published Tuesday, November 19, 2024.

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