(Washington, DC) -  Today, Department of Employment Services (DOES) announced that the District of Columbia's seasonally adjusted October 2008 unemployment rate was 7.4 percent, up 0.4 percent from the September 2008 rate.  The October 2008 rate was 1.7 percent higher than the rate in October 2007.

The seasonally adjusted national unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in October 2008, a rise of 0.4 percent from the September 2008 rate, and 1.7 percent higher than the October 2007 rate.

District of Columbia’s Civilian Labor Force, Employment and Unemployment 

The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for October 2008 was 7.5 percent; up 0.4 percent from the rate in September 2008 and 2.0 percent higher than the rate in October 2007.
 
Over the month, the District’s civilian labor force decreased by 1,800 to 329,800.  A total of 305,100 residents were employed and 24,700 were unemployed in October 2008.  A 2,900 decrease in the number of employed residents along with a 1,100 increase in the number of unemployed residents resulted in a 0.4 percent increase in the not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate.
 
From October 2007 to October 2008, the District’s civilian labor force increased by 4,700 as the number of employed residents decreased by 2,100 and the number of unemployed residents increased by 6,900. The District’s October 2008 unemployment rate was 2.0 percent higher than the rate in October 2007.

The October 2008 national unemployment rate of 6.1 percent (not seasonally adjusted) was 0.1 percent higher than the rate in September 2008 and 1.7 percent higher than the rate in October 2007.

District of Columbia Job Growth

The number of District wage and salary jobs increased by 5,800 in October 2008. The private sector increased by 3,500 jobs while the public sector decreased by 2,300 jobs. In the private sector, educational and health services added 3,100 jobs, other services and professional and business services added 400 jobs each, and trade, transportation and utilities added 200 jobs. Meanwhile, leisure and hospitality lost 400 jobs, and information and natural resources, mining and construction lost 100 jobs each. Manufacturing and financial activities were unchanged over the month. In the public sector, the District Government added 2,300 jobs while the federal government and transportation were unchanged.

In the last twelve months, the District gained a total of 10,600 jobs. The private sector added 9,500 jobs and the public sector gained 1,100 jobs. The private sector growth occurred in educational and health services (up by 4,400 jobs), other services (up by 3,100 jobs), professional and business services (up by 1,700 jobs), trade, transportation and utilities (up by 600 jobs), natural resources, mining and construction (up by 300 jobs), and leisure and hospitality (up by 200 jobs). Losses were noted in financial activities (down by 400 jobs), information (down by 300 jobs), and manufacturing (down by 100 jobs). In the public sector, the federal government increased by 1,400 jobs; transportation added 300 jobs; while the District government shed 600 jobs.