There Was A Spring In Hiring Managers’ Steps in April: Minnesota Payrolls Add Thousands of Jobs

(KNSI) – The labor market in Minnesota really bloomed to start spring.

The state’s Department of Employment and Economic Development says we picked up 3,900 jobs in the month of April. The private sector did even better, notching a gain of 5,500 jobs.

The state continues to have a larger percentage of the population in the workforce than the national average, 68% versus 62.7%, and Minnesota’s unemployment rate is better than the country’s a whole, 2.7% vs. 3.9%. DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek says, “Continued job growth and labor force growth are excellent indicators for Minnesota. We’ll continue to focus on making Minnesota a great place to work, live and raise a family.”

Since the start of the pandemic, Minnesota has added about 31,000 jobs overall. The labor force participation rate has shrunk, though, from about 70% to 68% today. As the post-COVID economic bounce back ends, it will be tough to continue enticing people back into the workforce.

Jobs are broken down by metro area through March. St. Cloud saw 705 positions filled over the past year, about half as many as the period from March 2022 to March 2023. Duluth-Superior’s total employment fell compared to a year ago and Mankato was flat. The best job growth is in Rochester, which saw about 3,100 hires.

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