Southwest Florida was nearly at full employment in May, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The region had a 3.8% jobless rate in April. As a whole, Florida added 29,600 jobs in May- the highest ‘raw total’ in the country, according to the BLS.
Locally, there were just 16,504 people out of a workforce of 434,073 actively seeking a job in Manatee, Sarasota and Charlotte counties.
In May, Manatee County had the region’s lowest unemployment rate, at 3.6 percent. Sarasota County was a close second, with 3.7 percent. Charlotte County’s jobless count was 4.4 percent last month.