Over 700,000 workers lost their jobs in March across all sectors of the economy; 34,000 of those were manufacturing jobs. While news of large manufacturing layoffs and furloughs like ones at GE and Boeing have sparked alarm about the strength of the industry as a whole, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows manufacturing posting significantly less than 1% job loss across all states. Twelve states, including Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Louisana, New Jersey, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Utah all posted gains in employment that totaled 9200 jobs during the month of March. Additionally, four states reported no job losses.
Data below is broken down by state and compared to February 2020 employment numbers. All data was sourced from the US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Updated March employment numbers can be found in our next post regarding April unemployment. These numbers were updated and released by the BOL on May 22, 2020.
Manufacturing Jobs Data by State
| State | Feb 2020 | March 2020 | change | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 270,400 | 272500 | 2,100 | 0.78% |
| Alaska | 11,200 | 10900 | -300 | -2.68% |
| Arizona | 176,900 | 177300 | 400 | 0.23% |
| Arkansas | 159,600 | 158100 | -1,500 | -0.94% |
| California | 1,306,600 | 1,304,500 | -2,100 | -0.16% |
| Colorado | 150,500 | 149,000 | -1,500 | -1.00% |
| Connecticut | 161,300 | 162,100 | 800 | 0.50% |
| Delaware | 26,800 | 26,600 | -200 | -0.75% |
| District of Columbia | 1,400 | 1,300 | -100 | -7.14% |
| Florida | 388,100 | 389,100 | 1,000 | 0.26% |
| Georgia | 402,000 | 401,100 | -900 | -0.22% |
| Hawaii | 13,900 | 13,900 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Idaho | 67,500 | 67,700 | 200 | 0.30% |
| Illinois | 573,300 | 573,200 | -100 | -0.02% |
| Indiana | 532,900 | 530,100 | -2,800 | -0.53% |
| Iowa | 222,300 | 221,800 | -500 | -0.22% |
| Kansas | 167,500 | 168,200 | 700 | 0.42% |
| Kentucky | 252,200 | 251,700 | -500 | -0.20% |
| Louisiana | 133,900 | 135,300 | 1,400 | 1.05% |
| Maine | 52,300 | 52,100 | -200 | -0.38% |
| Maryland | 113,700 | 112,500 | -1,200 | -1.06% |
| Massachusetts | 243,000 | 242,800 | -200 | -0.08% |
| Michigan | 621,600 | 619,200 | -2,400 | -0.39% |
| Minnesota | 318,100 | 317,400 | -700 | -0.22% |
| Mississippi | 148,600 | 147,700 | -900 | -0.61% |
| Missouri | 276,300 | 274,600 | -1,700 | -0.62% |
| Montana | 20,200 | 20,000 | -200 | -0.99% |
| Nebraska | 99,000 | 98,900 | -100 | -0.10% |
| Nevada | 59,000 | 58,400 | -600 | -1.02% |
| New Hampshire | 71,200 | 70,800 | -400 | -0.56% |
| New Jersey | 251,800 | 252,700 | 900 | 0.36% |
| New Mexico | 28,800 | 28,800 | 0 | 0.00% |
| New York | 436,600 | 435,800 | -800 | -0.18% |
| North Carolina | 476,700 | 473,000 | -3,700 | -0.78% |
| North Dakota | 25,600 | 25,700 | 100 | 0.39% |
| Ohio | 700,900 | 698,300 | -2,600 | -0.37% |
| Oklahoma | 137,600 | 137,400 | -200 | -0.15% |
| Oregon | 193,200 | 192,300 | -900 | -0.47% |
| Pennsylvania | 573,700 | 571,000 | -2,700 | -0.47% |
| Rhode Island | 39,200 | 39,500 | 300 | 0.77% |
| South Carolina | 258,400 | 258,400 | 0 | 0.00% |
| South Dakota | 43,400 | 43,800 | 400 | 0.92% |
| Tennessee | 354,100 | 353,900 | -200 | -0.06% |
| Texas | 910,500 | 900,700 | -9,800 | -1.08% |
| Utah | 135,400 | 136,300 | 900 | 0.66% |
| Vermont | 29,300 | 29,000 | -300 | -1.02% |
| Virginia | 241,400 | 240,100 | -1,300 | -0.54% |
| Washington | 290,900 | 290,000 | -900 | -0.31% |
| West Virginia | 46,200 | 45,800 | -400 | -0.87% |
| Wisconsin | 477,600 | 477,400 | -200 | -0.04% |
| Wyoming | 10,000 | 10,000 | 0 | 0.00% |
| Puerto Rico | 75,300 | 75,000 | -300 | -0.40% |
| Virgin Islands | 800 | 800 | 0 | 0.00% |
Totals: | 12,778,700 | 12744500 | -0.27% |
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