Virginia unemployment rate drops to 3.0 percent in March

The Virginia unemployment rate dropped 0.2 percentage points to 3.0 percent in March, while total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 2,700 jobs.

The Commonwealth’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 3.0 percent is 1.5 percentage points below the rate from a year ago. The labor force increased by 19,532 to 4,311,629, as the number of unemployed residents decreased by 4,922 to 131,101. The number of employed residents rose by 24,454 to 4,180,528.

Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate continues to be below the national rate of 3.6 percent. Virginia had second lowest unemployment in the southeast and 15th lowest in the nation.

The Commonwealth’s labor force participation rate increased slightly by 0.3 percentage points to 63.3 percent in March. The labor force participation rate measures the proportion of the civilian population age 16 and older that is employed or actively looking for work.

“We’re seeing green shoots in job recovery as we hit the lowest unemployment rate in the Commonwealth in nearly two years, that’s really exciting. My administration is focused on continuing this trend, creating jobs, and boosting our economy. We’re going to have a big surplus and we look forward to investing that back into Virginians, job recovery, our economy, education, law enforcement and mental health,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin said.

“We’re happy to see the unemployment rate fall and the labor force continue to grow,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick. “The labor force participation rate increased as well, but it’s still well below the pre-pandemic levels. We expect that number to continue rising as more Virginians head back to work.”

“Compared to this time last year, employment is up in all but two of the Commonwealth’s major industry divisions,” said Secretary of Labor Bryan Slater. “Even though the employment gains in March weren’t as large as the month before, our economy is continuing to trend in the right direction.”

From March 2021 to March 2022, the VEC estimates that establishments in Virginia gained 109,200 jobs, an increase of 2.8 percent. In March, the private sector recorded an over-the-year gain of 98,900 jobs, while employment in the public sector gained 10,300 jobs. Compared to a year ago, on a seasonally adjusted basis, nine of eleven major industry divisions experienced employment increases while two saw employment decrease.

The largest year-over-year job gain occurred in leisure and hospitality, up 54,700 jobs (+16.1%). The next largest over-the-year job gains occurred in professional and business services, up 16,900 jobs (+2.2%) and trade and transportation (+13,000 jobs). The only two industries to record over-the-year job losses were finance (-3,600 jobs) and manufacturing (-2,800 jobs).

For more details, visit the Virginia Employment Commission’s website at vec.virginia.gov.