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Overview of the labor market in April

Labor Supply

The number of South Dakotans who would be available to staff a new or expanding business, or South
Dakota's labor supply, was estimated at 79,805 in April 2013. Included in this labor supply are those who currently hold jobs (and would like to change) and those who, for a variety of reasons, do not have jobs. (See related data.)

South Dakota Labor Supply
April 2013

Labor Force

This data is seasonally adjusted.

Preliminary estimates show the April 2013 South Dakota labor force up over the month, with the level of employed increasing by 1,800 (0.4 percent). The level of unemployed decreased by 400 (2.1 percent). The unemployment rate dropped from 4.3 percent to 4.1 percent.

Nationally, the unemployment rate, at 7.5 percent, changed little in April but has declined by 0.4 percentage point since January. The number of unemployed persons, at 11.7 million, was also little changed over the month; however, unemployment has decreased by 673,000 since January.

South Dakota's April 2013 labor force of 448,700 increased compared to the April 2012 level of 445,700. The level of employed increased by 3,900 (0.9 percent); the level of unemployed decreased by 900 persons (4.6 percent). The unemployment rate of 4.1 percent is down over the year from 4.4 percent in April 2012.

South Dakota Unemployment Rates by County
Not seasonally adjusted
April 2013

Notes about labor force data

The unemployment rate represents the number of unemployed as a percent of the labor force. People are classified as unemployed if they do not have jobs, have actively looked for work in the prior four weeks and are currently available for work. People who were not working and were waiting to be recalled to jobs from which they were temporarily laid off are also included as unemployed.

Labor force estimates for South Dakota are produced by the Labor Market Information Center in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The concepts and definitions underlying the labor force data come from the Current Population Survey (CPS), the household survey which is the official measure of the labor force for the nation. The statewide estimate of the number of nonfarm jobs is a component of the model used to produce the labor force estimates. Other data used in this model include the number of continued unemployment insurance claims and survey data from the Current Population Survey (CPS) which is specific to the state.

Although state specific data is used in the production of the labor force estimates for South Dakota, the state monthly model estimates are controlled in "real time" to sum to national monthly labor force estimates from the CPS. Therefore, variation in the estimates of the employed and unemployed are somewhat controlled by what is happening nationally. (See methodology.)

South Dakota Nonfarm Wage & Salaried Workers by Industry

This data is not seasonally adjusted.

Over-the-month comparisons

Based on a monthly survey of South Dakota establishments, preliminary estimates show the nonfarm wage and salaried worker level is 414,600 for April, increasing by 5,500 (1.3 percent) compared to the revised March estimate of 409,100.

Mining, logging and construction had an increase of 1,600 workers (9.5 percent). Professional and business services had an increase of 1,300 workers (4.8 percent), and leisure and hospitality added 1,500 workers (3.6 percent).

Over-the-year comparisons

The nonfarm wage and salaried worker level increased by 3,400 (0.8 percent) when comparing the April 2012 level of 411,200 to the April 2013 level of 414,600. Industries adding the most workers included educational and health services, retail trade, financial activities and leisure and hospitality.

The largest number of jobs was added within the educational and health services industry sector, adding 1,600 workers (2.4 percent). Growth in this sector is largely driven by the continued demand for healthcare services.
Retail trade is continuing to trend upward and had an increase of 1,500 workers (3.0 percent) to a level of 51,700 workers in April 2013.

The financial activities sector added 1,200 workers (4.2 percent) over the year to a level of 29,500 in April 2013 compared to 28,300 in April 2012. The leisure and hospitality sector added 1,200 workers (2.8 percent), for a total of 43,700 in April 2013, up from the April 2012 level of 42,500.

Find nonfarm worker data for areas within South Dakota.

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See more information on the Current Employment Statistics (CES) Program, including definitions.