Fort Smith metro annual job numbers up in September, jobless rate dips to 3.2%

The Fort Smith metro posted year-over-year net job gains of almost 2% in September, with job numbers up almost 4% in the past five years, but 4.4% below record metro employment, according to an Oct. 30 report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The BLS report, which is preliminary and subject to revision, estimated 118,580 jobs in the metro in September, up 1.9%, or 2,209 jobs, compared with September 2023, and slightly above the 118,309 in the previous month. The region set a jobs record of 124,098 in June 2006.

In the past five years (September 2019-September 2024), the region has added 4,277 jobs, a gain of 3.74%.

The metro labor force – persons deemed eligible to work – totaled 122,454, up 1.1% compared with 121,145 in September 2023. The Fort Smith metro unemployment rate in September was 3.2%, below the 3.9% in September 2023. The number of unemployed in the region was 3,874 in September, down 18.8% compared with September 2023 and also below the estimated 4,437 unemployed in August.

Following are the year-over-year changes in the region’s five largest job sectors.
Trade, Transportation, Utilities
September 2024: 23,800
September 2023: 24,000
down 0.83%
The sector set a record of 24,800 in December 2023.

Manufacturing
September 2024: 19,700
September 2023: 19,100
up 3.1%
The sector set a record of 31,200 in June 1999.

Education and Health Services
September 2024: 19,400
September 2023: 18,600
up 4.3%
The sector set a record of 19,400 in August.

Government
September 2024: 16,800
September 2023: 17,000
down 1.2%
The sector set a record of 18,900 in May 2017.

Professional and Business Services
September 2024: 12,000
September 2023: 12,000
unchanged
The sector set a record with 13,600 jobs in April 2018.

The number of employed in Arkansas during September was an estimated 1,363,021, up 29,007 jobs, or 2.2%, compared with September 2023, and above the 1,358,680 in August, according to the BLS. Arkansans without jobs in September totaled 45,797, down from the 46,741 in August, and down 7.7% compared with the 49,599 in September 2023.

Arkansas’ biggest year-over-year sector gains were in Education and Health Services (8,800 more jobs), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (4,500 more jobs), and Construction (3,500 more jobs).

Unemployment rates were higher in September than a year earlier in 260 of the 389 metro areas, lower in 101 areas, and unchanged in 28 areas, according to the BLS report. A total of 87 areas had jobless rates of less than 3% and 3 areas had rates of at least 8%. Nonfarm payroll employment increased over the year in 42 metro areas and was essentially unchanged in 347 areas.