Springfield metro area unemployment rate jumps

The Springfield metropolitan statistical area recorded an unemployment rate jump in May, in line with other MSAs in the state.

The jobless rate for the Springfield MSA – which comprises Greene, Christian, Dallas, Polk and Webster counties – moved up to 3.6% in May from 2.9% in April, according to a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics news release issued this week.

The state’s metro areas, by May unemployment rate, are as follows:
• Columbia, 3.3%, up from 2.6% in April
• Jefferson City, 3.4%, up from 2.7%
• Kansas City, 3.5%, up from 3%
• Springfield, 3.6%, up from 2.9%
• St. Joseph, 3.6%, up from 2.9%
• Cape Girardeau, 3.9%, up from 3.1%
• St. Louis, 3.9%, up from 3.3%
• Joplin, 4.1%, up from 3.3%

Missouri's May unemployment rate increased to 3.9% from 3.2% in April. The data is not seasonally adjusted.

Compared with a year prior, May's unemployment rates were higher in 269 of the 389 metro areas measured nationwide by the BLS, lower in 83 and unchanged in 37. The Springfield MSA's May 2023 unemployment rate was 2.8%.