HONOLULU (AP) — State officials say Hawaii’s unemployment rate dropped to 4.9 percent in April, its lowest rate since October 2008.
The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations said Thursday that the rate dropped two-tenths of a percentage point from 5.1 percent in March. The rate is 1.2 percentage points lower than the 6.1 percent unemployment rate seen in April last year.
The slight drop in unemployment from March was not because more people had jobs, but because some left the workforce.
State officials say 100 fewer people had jobs in April compared with March, while 1,550 left the workforce.
Unemployment rates in the counties in April were 3.9 percent in Honolulu, 6.6 percent in Hawaii County, 5.7 percent in Kauai and 4.8 percent in Maui. The county rates aren’t seasonally adjusted.
