Unemployment Rate Down Slightly in July
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Alaska’s unemployment rate dropped slightly in July, down one-tenth of a percentage point from June. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development puts the seasonally adjusted figure at 4.5 percent.
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The rate in Alaska remains above the national rate of 3.5 percent, which likewise was a slight dip after three flat months.
The unadjusted rate in Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough was a combined 4 percent, the same figure as the Interior. Southeast Alaska dropped to 3.5 percent. Fishing season in Dillingham and the Lake and Peninsula Borough gave the Southwest region the state’s biggest monthly drop, from 8.4 to 7 percent.
Total number of jobs increased 3 percent since July 2021, with 9,900 more Alaskans employed than a year earlier. That figure is a bigger improvement than the month before, yet still 14,100 jobs below July 2019.
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September 2026
The leisure and hospitality sector had the strongest year-over-year growth, up 10.3 percent, but the 40,700 total jobs are still 3,700 less than in July 2019. Transportation, warehousing, and utilities saw 4.6 percent growth in jobs year-over-year, with 2,900 added since July 2021, yet that sector remains 3,300 jobs below July 2019. The oil and gas sector is 2,600 jobs down from 2019.
The Department of Labor points to a few sectors that have recovered to their pre-pandemic employment: construction, education, healthcare, wholesale trade, and the federal government.
What happens when a city with fewer than 300 residents becomes a major freight and tourism hub, despite being accessible only by boat, plane, or a one-lane highway/railroad tunnel managed on a strict schedule?
If you’re in the City of Whittier, you get busy. The city has two separate transportation planning efforts underway, including a safety action plan under the federal Safe Streets and Roads for All initiative, which focuses on improving safety for pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, and emergency responders. The second is Whittier Moves, the city’s transportation master plan, which serves as the long-term roadmap for growth.