Pa. Hits Lowest Unemployment Rate Since 1976

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HARRISBURG, Pa. (KDKA) - The Pennsylvania unemployment rates dropped to the lowest point since 1976, said state officials in a newly released jobs report.

The Department of Labor and Industry released on Friday that the commonwealth's unemployment rate decreased one-tenth of a percentage point to a record low of 3.9% in March.

The national unemployment rate for the month of March remained unchanged at 3.8%

Currently, there are approximately 255,000 unemployed residents in Pennsylvania.

In March, Pennsylvania had an additional 5,000 residents join the labor force.

The number of Pennsylvanians that were employed raised by 10,000 people to a record high 6,219,000.

The Department of Labor and Industry reports that the total estimated the number of jobs in Pa. rose 4,000 from February to a record high of 6,044,500.

Over the course of the past year, jobs across Pennsylvania increased by 0.8%.