photo by: Kansas Department of Labor

Kansas Department of Labor

TOPEKA – The Kansas economy recorded its 14th consecutive month of job growth in July, the Kansas Department of Labor said Friday.

Preliminary numbers show that on a seasonally adjusted basis, Kansas gained 23,400 nonfarm jobs overall during that period, including 20,900 private-sector jobs.

That represents about a 2.4 percent increase in private-sector employment, slightly higher than the national growth rate of about 2.1 percent over that same period, according to state and national employment figures.

Labor economist Tyler Tenbrink said the numbers show Kansas is still in the midst of an extremely tight labor market.

“July estimates show Kansas employers are looking for more labor and many have increased hourly wages to their current employees,” Tenbrink said in a news release.

Tenbrink said the number of average hours worked per week in July rose to 35 hours, and average nominal earnings rose 4.3 percent, to $24.15 per hour, compared with July 2017.

The size of the state’s civilian labor force, at 1.5 million, was virtually unchanged from the year before. Total nonfarm employment, at just less than 1.27 million, was the highest number ever recorded in Kansas.

The state’s overall unemployment rate stood at 3.4 percent in July, unchanged from the previous month but down two-tenths of a point compared with July 2017.

The Lawrence metropolitan area’s unemployment rate stood at 3.8 percent in July, up from 3.6 percent in June but unchanged from a year ago.

The Topeka-area jobless rate was 4 percent, up from 3.7 percent in June but down one-tenth of a point from a year ago.

The jobless rate in the Wichita area rose three-tenths of a point, to 4.3 percent, but that’s still down from 4.8 percent a year ago.

The Kansas side of the Kansas City metropolitan area posted a 3.8 percent jobless rate, up from 3.4 percent in June but down one-tenth of a point from July 2017.

The Manhattan metropolitan area recorded a 3.6 percent unemployment rate in June, up from 3.4 percent in June but down from 3.8 percent a year earlier.