Overall unemployment rate moved down to 4.8% with the biggest shift in Restaurants & Hotels, which gained 200 roles, based on the most recently available information published in April 2021.
Total employment in the Fort Smith, AR-OK market rose by 558 jobs in March and the unemployment rate decreased compared to the prior month by 80 bps to 4.8%. The national unemployment rate decreased by 38 bps over the same time to 6.2%.
- Fort Smith, AR-OK unemployment rate is 138 bps below the national rate which is a positive sign.
- Unemployment in the market is 80 bps above the unemployment rate in the market last year at this time, which is a negative.
- Average wages (per hour) grew in March versus prior month by 1.6% and are down compared to last year at this time in the market.
For key employment segments of the market, total jobs grew by 0.6% . Key sectors include:
- Transportation & Utilities: 23,400; +100
- Government: 18,000; -100
- Education & Healthcare: 16,800; +100
- Manufacturing: 16,700; no change
- Business Services: 12,000; +100
- Restaurants & Hotels: 8,300; +200
- Construction, Mining: 5,500; +100
- Other Jobs: 4,700; +200
- Financial Services: 3,700; no change
- IT & Development: 1,000; no change
Data is based on the most recent 12 months available, through March 2021 (Data published April 2021 and reports created on April 29, 2021). Source: Government data agency and locally acquired statistics.
Note: All reported data is not seasonally adjusted.