Philly Unemployment Declines

But so does the workforce.

Via Philadelphia Business Journal: “Philadelphia’s unemployment rate declined once again. The rate fell to 8 percent in March 2014 from 8.3 percent in February, according to preliminary data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate is 2.1 percent lower than March 2013. The city added 4,000 jobs last month bringing the number of jobs in Philadelphia to its highest level for a March since 2003.”

The BLS statistics show, however, that Philly’s workforce is about 4,000 workers smaller than it was a year ago. While roughly 9,000 more Philadelphians are working, a good chunk of those jobs are in “leisure and hospitality” services — basically, low-paying restaurant work that is the fastest-growing job sector in the city.

Still, good news is good news: More Philadelphians are working, and fewer are unemployed, than a year ago. We’ll take what we can get.