KC job growth slows, unemployment rate rises

The Kansas City area’s unemployment rate rose to 5.5 percent in March, up from 5.3 percent in February.

Joblessness in the metro area in March 2008 was 0.7 percentage point higher than it was in March 2007, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday.

About 2,300 more unemployed persons were looking for work in the metro area last month than in February, the bureau estimated.

At the same time, though, the bureau’s preliminary report indicated that metro area payrolls grew by about 7,200 jobs from February to March.

Compared to March a year ago, the bureau estimated that Kansas City area nonfarm establishments had 7,800 more payroll jobs last month. About 1,014,900 workers were on establishment payrolls in March 2008.

| Diane Stafford, Stafford@kcstar.com