Alaska Employment: Job Growth and Unemployment Rate Flat in April
Photo Credit: FUNTAP P | DREAMSTIME
Alaska’s unemployment rate held steady in April at the same rate as nearly every month in 2025. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOLWD) puts the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for March at 4.7 percent, unchanged from the month before and equal to rates for almost every month for more than a year.
Level with a Year Ago
Alaska saw a streak of 4.7 percent unemployment every month since mid-2024, except for last July when it rose briefly to 4.8 percent, then again in December and January. (Data for September and October was unavailable due to the federal government shutdown.) Rates have been essentially flat since slowly climbing from a low point of 3.8 percent in August 2022.
DOLWD notes that the national unemployment rate was also unchanged in April at 4.3 percent.
The unadjusted unemployment rate in the Anchorage/Mat-Su Region rose slightly in April to 4.4 percent from a revised 4.1 percent in March.
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May 2026
Total nonfarm employment rose to 332,300 in April from a revised 328,000 the month before. The net gain of 100 jobs from April 2025 is negligible; DOLWD rounds the growth rate down to 0.0 percent. A 3.3 percent loss in the Government sector wiped out a 1.1 percent gain in Private sector employment.
Federal employment (excluding uniformed military) rose slightly in April to 13,300 from a revised 13,200 in March, but that figure was 1,900 fewer jobs than a year earlier, a decrease of 12.5 percent. That shrinkage combined with 600 fewer jobs in the state government and 200 in local government, which includes public schools.
Normally reliable gains in Construction employment slackened in April, as that sector shed 900 jobs compared to April 2025, also the total of 17,900 jobs in April was 400 more than March. The Information sector continues to decline, losing 100 jobs year-over-year to stand at 4,100, for a 2.4 percent loss. Professional and Business Services lost 100 jobs compared to a year ago, declining 0.3 percent to 28,600, a slight rise since March.
All other industry sectors saw year-over-year growth. Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities added the most, with 1,200 more jobs compared to April 2025, for 5 percent growth. The Oil and Gas sector grew by 11.2 percent, adding 1,000 jobs in April compared to a year earlier.
