Northwest Arkansas MSA Shrinks Unemployment
by June 11, 2001 12:00 am 67 views
In April, the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers metropolitan statistical area continued to sport the lowest unemployment rate of metros in Arkansas, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Northwest Arkansas MSA logged 1.8 percent unemployment last month, down from 2 percent in April 2000.
Also according to the report, nonfarm payroll employment reached a record high for the metro area with 156,400, up 2.8 percent, or 4,200 jobs, from April 2000.
Of the six sectors analyzed, only manufacturing lost jobs, registering 34,900, down 1.7 percent from 35,500 for the comparable period.
Construction/mining, transportation/ public utilities, trade, finance /insurance/real estate and government all gained employees.
Of those, construction/mining obtained the most jobs with a 5.8 percent increase to 7,300, up from 6,900 last year.
One woman at Arvest Bank in Rogers is a tribute to low unemployment rates in Northwest Arkansas. On June 1, Dorothy Brown Lynch celebrated her 50th year of service at the bank.
Lynch was one of Benton County’s first female bank officers. The career milestone also marked the beginning of her retirement.