Jobs, unemployment up in Rochester as more seek work

ROCHESTER — More people in the Rochester area are coming back to work, spurring job — and unemployment — growth.

The Rochester Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Dodge, Fillmore, Olmsted and Wabasha counties, added 1,685 jobs — or 1.3% — from May to June, according to the most recent state data.

Job gains are typically expected in the summer months as summer seasonal workers are added to Minnesota's labor force. Yet, that kind of growth in June hasn't happened since 2018, when the area added close to 2,000 jobs that month.

At the same time, the Rochester area's unemployment rate ticked up from a record-low 1.3% in May to 1.9% last month. The local labor force added about 1,000 people in June, while the area had about 800 more unemployed people seeking work than in May.

Cameron Macht, a regional analyst with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), said Rochester continues to show strong economic growth even taking seasonal employment swings into account.

"The labor force in the city and in the surrounding area is actually increasing because people are coming back into the labor force to try and take jobs," he said.

Rochester's education and health services jobs continue to grow, reflecting the area's strong medical industry. The industry added 538 jobs in June and is up by about 1,000 jobs compared to last year. Macht pointed to Rochester's mining, logging and construction job increases as a strong sign of economic vitality in the region. That industry added just more than 300 jobs — about 5.4% — in June and remains about 5.2% higher than in June 2020.

Rochester is the first metropolitan area in Minnesota to recover jobs lost from the COVID-19 pandemic, but the area's low unemployment rate reflects a tight labor market and an ongoing struggle for Minnesota employers to fill jobs.

The area continues to add professional and business services jobs — 100 last month — that Macht said tend to be high-paying positions that attract higher-skilled workers, another good economic sign.