Delaware’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in May was 4%, up from 3.9% in April, the Delaware Department of Labor reported.
The department reported 20,100 unemployed Delawareans in May compared to 19,100 in May 2024. The US unemployment rate was 4.2% in May, unchanged from April 2025. In May 2024, the US unemployment rate was 4%, while Delaware’s rate was 3.8%.
In May, seasonally adjusted non-farm employment was 494,100, unchanged from April 2025. May 2024, Delaware’s total nonfarm jobs have increased by 5,300, a rise of 1.1%. Nationally, jobs during that period also increased by 1.1%.
Delaware did see an increase in the labor participation rate to 59%. It was the first gain in that category since April 2023.
However, the Delaware rate remains 3.4% below the national figure and seven-tenths of a percent of the state figure a year ago for reasons that may include an aging population that includes an influx of older residents to Sussex County.
The higher labor participation rate was affected by 800 people joining the workforce up 900 from a year ago.
The business community and others have worried about the economic impact of the low labor participation rate as the state sees job vacancies in skilled and unskilled categories.
At the same time, individuals entering the labor force accounted for half of the gain in the May jobless rate, up from one-third in April, the department employed.
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