The number of oil and gas jobs dipped slightly in Oklahoma in the month of June as the state’s jobless rate held steady, according to the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission.
The June overall jobless rate remained at 3.2% with a total of 58,214 unemployed Oklahomans out of a labor force of 1,831,502. The U.S. unemployment rate moved up to 3.7% for June.
In the Mining and Logging sector where oil and gas employment is figured, June employment totaled 52,600. But it was down 200 from May 2019 and down 500 from June of 2018. The May to June 2019 decline represented 0.4% while the drop from a year ago was 0.9%.
While Mining and Logging reported a drop in June, the Trade, Transportation and Utilities sector lost 1,400 jobs, the largest over-the-month job declines.
Construction claimed the largest job gain over 4,900 jobs over the year while Trade, Transportation and Utilities added 3,600 jobs and Education and Health Services and Government each added 3,100 jobs in from June 2018 to June 2019.
Oklahoma’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was down 0.1 percentage point compared to June 2018. The state’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment added 2,400 jobs or 0.1% in June 2019.