Pa. jobless rate grew for second month

Pennsylvania’s jobless rate is up for the second straight month as the employment fell and unemployment rose.

The state Department of Labor and Industry said Friday that the seasonally adjusted rate in August was 5.8 percent, up one tenth of a percentage point from July. The U.S. rate is currently 6.1 percent.

In a household survey, the agency reported that the number of people working fell by 35,000 to below 6 million while unemployment rose by 6,000 to 367,000. It was the fourth straight month that employment fell and the second straight month that unemployment rose.

A separate survey of employers found that payrolls remained flat at just under 5.8 million. The construction, manufacturing and professional and business services sectors declined, while government, education and health sector payrolls grew.

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