According to the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation’s (DETR) May 2021 economic report, Nevada added back 10,200 jobs over the month as the state continues to recover.
The number of jobs remains below typical levels, but is up 212,700 since May 2020, an annual increase of 19.2%.
The large increase of employment over the year reflects the significant effects the pandemic had on employment last year.
The total employment level in the state is 1,318,400.
The state’s unemployment rate in May is 7.8 percent, down slightly from 8.0 percent in April and down 16.7 percentage points when compared to May 2020.
Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Employment (Seasonally Adjusted):
o Las Vegas employment increased by 8,200 jobs (0.9%) since April, an increase of 162,000 jobs (20.9%) since May 2020.
o Reno employment had an increase of 800 jobs (0.3%) since April, an increase of 32,800 jobs (15.4%) since May 2020.
o Carson City employment had a decrease of 200 jobs (-0.7%) since April, an increase of 2,400 jobs (8.7%) since May 2020.
“This month’s data gives us our first look at the employment impacts from the state’s move back to being 100% open, and where that process stood in the middle of May. These estimates show particularly strong growth in the food services industry which grew by 4.5 percent over the month and added 5,400 jobs since April. The leisure and hospitality industry added the most jobs over the month overall, with 9,500 jobs statewide and 6,800 in Las Vegas as large hotel casinos continue to ramp up hiring to capture pent up demand for summer tourism. The state’s unemployment rate declined slightly from April’s revised level and is now under eight percent. The labor force participation rate ticked up slightly from last month but remains below pre-pandemic levels when it was nearly two percent higher. Finally, the number of claimants filing for weekly unemployment benefits fell by 30,000 in May, from 190,000 to 159,000, continuing a trend that began in late March. While employment has not fully recovered and unemployment remains high, the trends consistently point to an ongoing recovery as we head into the summer” said David Schmidt, Chief Economist.
