Philadelphia-area employment down from last year
Despite a national job count increase, employment in the Philadelphia-area down about .5 percent since this time last year.
Total nonfarm employment in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area was at 2,714,900 in May, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s 13,4000 fewer jobs than May 2010.
BLS numbers show the decline is due mostly to a drop in federal government employment. In the Philadelphia-area alone, the government sector lost 17,700 jobs between May 2010 and May 2011. That’s the largest 12-month decrease since the BLS began tracking this information in 1990.
The national average for job growth is .7 percent, which Dallas, Houston and Boston have all exceeded. Of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan areas, only San Francisco and Atlanta fared worse in May, with .7 percent and 1.3 percent declines.
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