Maryland Monthly Labor Review - December 2003
Labor Force and Industry Developments

Employment subsided during December as anticipated, with weather-related layoffs and holiday shutdowns contributing to this downswing.  The withdrawal of job seekers from the labor market, however, helped to offset seasonal employment reductions and to stabilize unemployment at 4.1 percent.

During December, employment declined by nearly 16,100 persons to 2,787,983. The job seeker count also dwindled, helping to minimize the impact of monthly employment reductions and to lower the unemployment count somewhat to 119,011.
Maryland's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate inched up slightly from 4.2 percent to 4.4 percent, an increase produced by an influx of job seekers into the labor market. Nationally, labor market movements countered those of Maryland with downsizing in the labor force causing unemployment to subside from 5.9 percent to 5.7 percent.

Activity on Maryland's business payrolls was reflective of seasonal economics. Hiring, although slower than the norm, was centered primarily in the retail trade sector as employers continued to hire temporary workers to accommodate holiday shopping activity.  Retail trade expansion, coupled with hiring in health services and transportation, helped to downplay the effects of seasonal reductions in the construction and hospitality industry along with short-term furloughs characteristic of several manufacturing industries during the holiday season.

REGIONAL ECONOMICS

Baltimore Metropolitan Area.the number of unemployed in the area fell by nearly 2,000 persons, easing the unemployment rate down a notch to 4.6 percent. Locally, unemployment trends were mixed, with the most pronounced movement, occurring in Harford County where unemployment moved up from 3.9 percent to 4.2 percent.

Maryland's DC Suburbs...unemployment moved down slightly from 3.2 percent to 3.1 percent. In Calvert, the only suburban county to experience an upturn in unemployment, a slight increase from 2.5 percent to 2.6 percent was noted.

Western Maryland...employment declines outpaced those in the labor force, adding just over 750 persons to the unemployment rolls and pushing the unemployment rate up from 4.5 percent to 5.2 percent. Rising unemployment was the norm throughout the region, with normal seasonal reductions and short-term furloughs in manufacturing industries diminishing local labor market conditions.

Talbot-Caroline LMA...an increase in the number of unemployed in Talbot County pushed unemployment in the region up by 0.3 percentage points to 4.9 percent in December.

Wicomico-Somerset LMA...employment in the area, unlike other areas of the state, rose during December. This increase fell short of labor force expansion, causing the area's unemployment rate to rise to 5.3 percent, up from 5.1 percent.

Balance of State... seasonal layoffs, particularly in construction, services and select manufacturing industries, caused the number of unemployed to rise by nearly 750 persons and moved the unemployment rate up from 5.4 percent to 5.8 percent