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State reports show job numbers fell slightly in July while employment hit a new record • Wisconsin Examiner

In Wisconsin, the number of jobs fell slightly in July while employment rose, according to forecasts released Thursday by the state Labor Department.

Wisconsin's unemployment rate remained nearly stable at 3% in July, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) reported. The projected number of people reporting employment reached a new high of 3.049 million.

The state's projected number of jobs declined slightly in July, the department reported, but is still higher than the year-ago figure. The changes reported Thursday from June and the previous year were not considered statistically significant.

Both employment and jobs data are extrapolated from federal government surveys. Employment figures are calculated from a household survey that asks whether household members are working or actively looking for work. Jobs figures are calculated from a survey that asks employers for their payroll records.

The employment survey forecast a decline of 6,500 non-farm jobs in July from June, while the total remains 25,700 higher than in July 2023. Private sector jobs fell by 8,500 from June, but remained 17,900 more than the previous year.

Dennis Winters, Chief Economist of the Department of Workforce Development (DWD photo)

“We know that the creation of new jobs and the economy as a whole are slowing down somewhat compared to before,” said Dennis Winters, chief economist at the DWD, in an online briefing for journalists on Thursday. “It was going like crazy before, so the development is slowing down.”

Winters said some decline is to be expected during a long period of generally positive news. He noted that another federal jobs report is due in early September, before the Federal Reserve Board meeting, when some forecasters expect interest rates to be cut in response to slowing economic growth.

“We'll just continue to monitor it and see what develops. But I think … we're on a pretty good path,” Winters said.

Winters said employers continue to report a “constant challenge in finding sufficient and high-quality workers,” but there remain signs of optimism. “They are trying to create new jobs where possible. They plan to invest more capital in the future.”

So far, he said, the restrictions on employers have not been due to declining consumer demand, but to the difficulty of finding employees.

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