St. Louis Loses 1,900 Jobs in October, but Number is Skewed by GM Strike
Date Posted: November 19, 2019
Posted In: Workforce,
From St. Louis Post-Dispatch: The St. Louis area lost jobs in October for the second straight month as the manufacturing sector turned negative for the first time this year.
Seasonally adjusted numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statisticsshow the metro area shedding 1,900 jobs in October after a loss of 1,800 jobs in September.
The October downturn and the slippage in manufacturing, though, can be explained by the General Motors strike. The strike, which ended Oct. 25, idled GM’s plant in Wentzville for 40 days, which meant that most of the plant’s 4,300 workers were not counted as employed during October.
The latest figures show metro St. Louis losing 1,700 manufacturing jobs between October 2018 and October 2019. For most of the year, the BLS had been reporting year-over-year growth of around 4,000 jobs. Estimates for specific sectors, including manufacturing, are not seasonally adjusted.
The construction industry continues to lead St. Louis’ job growth, with 5,800 jobs added in the latest 12 months. (That is for a sector that includes mining and forestry, but is dominated by construction.) Professional and business services firms added 4,200 jobs while leisure and hospitality employers added 3,800.