Arkansas job numbers up 1.2% in March, jobless rate rises to 3.7%

Arkansas’ jobless rate rose to 3.7% in March from 3.4% in March 2024, with the year-over-year number of jobless rising 10%. Job gains in the state’s education and health services category was responsible for more than half of the state’s job growth in March.

The number of employed in Arkansas during March was an estimated 1,368,961, up 15,686 jobs, or 1.2%, compared with March 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report posted Friday (April 18). The March numbers are preliminary and subject to revision.

Arkansas’ labor force, the number of people eligible to work, in March was 1,421,038, up 1.5% from 1,400,613 in March 2024. The state’s labor force participation rate in March was 58.4%, up from 58% in March 2024.

Arkansans without jobs in March totaled 52,077, up 10% compared with 47,338 in March 2024. The last time the jobless number was above 52,000 was July 2021 (52,448).

The biggest year-over-year sector gains were in education and health services (8,200 more jobs); trade, transportation and utilities (3,400 more jobs); and manufacturing (2,400 more jobs).

NATIONAL NUMBERS
Unemployment rates were higher in March in three states, lower in one state, and stable in 46 states, according to the BLS report. Twenty-eight states had jobless rate increases from a year earlier, one state had a decrease, and 21 states had little change. The national jobless rate changed little over the month at 4.2% but was 0.3 percentage point higher than in March 2024.

South Dakota had the lowest jobless rate in March at 1.8%. Nevada had the highest rate at 5.7%. In total, 18 states had rates lower than the U.S. rate of 4.2%, five states had higher rates, and 27 states had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation.

Over the year, nonfarm payroll employment rose in 13 states and was essentially unchanged in 37 states. The largest job gains occurred in Texas (up 192,100), Florida (up 135,000), and New York (up 126,200). The largest percentage increases occurred in Idaho (up 2.6%), South Carolina (up 2.4%), and Utah (up 1.9%).

ARKANSAS JOB SECTOR NUMBERS
Trade, transportation, and utilities
March 2025: 272,100
March 2024: 268,700
February marked an employment record for the sector with 272,500 jobs.

Education and health services
March 2025: 220,000
March 2024: 211,900
March marked an employment record for the sector.

Government
March 2025: 212,600
March 2024: 212,300
Sector employment hit a peak of 224,100 in May 2010.

Manufacturing
March 2025: 165,000
March 2024: 162,600
Manufacturing, once the state’s largest jobs sector, posted record employment of 247,600 in February 1995.

Professional and business services
March 2025: 161,000
March 2024: 159,400
January marked an employment record for the sector with 163,500 jobs.

Leisure and hospitality
March 2025: 130,600
March 2024: 129,100
March marked an employment record for the sector.

Financial activities
March 2025: 71,000
March 2024: 69,700
February marked an employment record for the sector with 71,100 jobs.

Construction
March 2025: 66,200
March 2024: 67,000
August 2024 marked an employment record for the sector with 67,500 jobs.