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Report: NM unemployment rate hits 4.2% in September
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Year-over-year employment grew by nearly 14,000 jobs, but New Mexico’s unemployment is on the rise.
That’s according to the labor report from the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, which shows the state’s unemployment rate in September stood at 4.2% — a new high in 2024.
The increase follows a monthslong trend upward in the unemployment rate for the state, which has risen from 3.8% — where it stood from March to May — to where it stands now. The rate in June jumped to 3.9% from 4% in July to 4.1% in August, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
September’s unemployment rate also marks the fourth time this year it has been at or above 4%, with the other time in January.
Data shows the state added 13,700 jobs since last year. The private sector led the way with 10,400 jobs added and another 3,300 in the public sector, according to the jobs report.
In the private sector, large gains came in the professional and business services industries (2,600 jobs) and in the education and health services industries, which added 3,300 jobs, according to the report.
On the public sector side, state and local governments added 3,400 jobs while federal jobs decreased by 100.
According to the report, Bernalillo County’s non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.9% last month — a decrease from 4.2% in August. Santa Fe County’s unemployment rate stood at 3.8% and Sandoval’s was at 4.2%.
Meanwhile, the national unemployment rate dropped from 4.2% in August to 4.1% in September, according to the report.
