Overall unemployment rate moved up to 3.1% with the biggest shift in Restaurants & Hotels, which lost 1,100 roles, based on the most recently available information published in March 2022.

Total employment in the Portsmouth, NH-ME market declined by 365 jobs in January and the unemployment rate increased compared to the prior month by 100 bps to 3.1%. The national unemployment rate increased by 74 bps over the same time to 4.4%.

  • Portsmouth, NH-ME unemployment rate is 133 bps below the national rate which is a positive sign.
  • Unemployment in the market is 120 bps below the unemployment rate in the market last year at this time, which is a positive.
  • Average wages (per hour) grew in January versus prior month by 7.8% and are up compared to last year at this time in the market.
Month over Month Unemployment Change
Year over Year Unemployment Change
Portsmouth, NH-ME Unemployment January 2022

For key employment segments of the market, total jobs declined by -2.5%. Key sectors include:

  • Transportation & Utilities: 16,200; -200
  • Government: 14,700; -100
  • Business Services: 14,200; -600
  • Education & Healthcare: 13,400; -100
  • Restaurants & Hotels: 10,500; -1,100
  • Manufacturing: 9,200; no change
  • Financial Services: 5,300; -100
  • Construction, Mining: 2,800; -100
  • Other Jobs: 2,800; no change
  • IT & Development: 1,900; no change
Portsmouth, NH-ME Unemployment by Industry January 2022

Data is based on the most recent 12 months available, through January 2022 (Data published March 2022 and reports created on March 18, 2022).  Source: Government data agency and locally acquired statistics.

Note: All reported data is not seasonally adjusted.