Overall unemployment rate moved down to 3.0% with the biggest shift in Restaurants & Hotels, which gained 9,300 roles, based on the most recently available information published in June 2022.

Total employment in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV market declined by 3,816 jobs in April and the unemployment rate decreased compared to the prior month by 60 bps to 3.0%. The national unemployment rate decreased by 42 bps over the same time to 3.3%.

  • Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV unemployment rate is 34 bps below the national rate which is a positive sign.
  • Unemployment in the market is 190 bps below the unemployment rate in the market last year at this time, which is a positive.
  • Average wages (per hour) grew in April versus prior month by 4.6% and are up compared to last year at this time in the market.
Month over Month Unemployment Change
Year over Year Unemployment Change
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Unemployment April 2022

For key employment segments of the market, total jobs grew by 0.5% . Key sectors include:

  • Business Services: 795,500; +2,200
  • Government: 714,700; +200
  • Education & Healthcare: 435,900; +5,300
  • Transportation & Utilities: 399,200; -1,100
  • Restaurants & Hotels: 296,400; +9,300
  • Other Jobs: 197,000; +2,000
  • Construction, Mining: 162,700; -400
  • Financial Services: 152,500; -400
  • IT & Development: 76,600; -600
  • Manufacturing: 55,500; +200
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Unemployment by Industry April 2022

Data is based on the most recent 12 months available, through April 2022 (Data published June 2022 and reports created on June 1, 2022).  Source: Government data agency and locally acquired statistics.

Note: All reported data is not seasonally adjusted.