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Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate remained at 4.2% and below the national average. JUSTSTOCK/GETTY IMAGES
Pa. unemployment rate remains below national average
Ed Gruver//May 26, 2026//
Listen to this articlePennsylvania’s unemployment rate remained at 4.2% in April and below the national average.
The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry reported that the commonwealth’s total nonfarm jobs reached a record high level of nearly 6.2 million in April.
Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was one-tenth of a percentage point below the U.S. unemployment rate, also unchanged over April at 4.3%. The commonwealth’s unemployment rate matched its April 2025 level of 4.2%, while the U.S. rate was up one-tenth from last April.
Pennsylvania’s civilian labor force, which is the estimated number of residents working or looking for work, increased by 14,000 in April to 6,607,000. Employment accounted for the gain while unemployment was unchanged over the month.
Pennsylvania’s total nonfarm jobs also increased in April, growing by 10,700 over the month to a record high of 6,198,800 in April. Jobs increased in seven of the 11 industry supersectors. The largest volume gain was in professional & business services, up 4,500 over the month, while the largest decline was in leisure & hospitality, which was down by 2,200.
Education & health services rose to a record high level. Over the year, jobs were up 31,900 with gains in seven of the 11 supersectors. The largest volume gain from last April was in education & health services, which increased by 32,000.
