The Kansas unemployment rate was 6.2 percent in August 2012, 0.7 percent lower than the same month last year. This continues the general decline in unemployment rates that began after reaching a peak of 8.1 percent in July 2009. Even with declines in the unemployment rate, job growth has been slow. In the first eight months of 2012, total employment was 1,342,288, only 0.9 percent higher than the first eight months of 2011.
As of this writing, Kansas employment is on track to increase 1 percent in 2012, with much of the job growth having occurred in the first eight months of the year. In 2013, Kansas employment is projected to increase 1.8 percent, gaining approximately 24,175 jobs.2.
To read the complete 2013 economic outlook for Kansas, click here.