North Dakota’s Unemployment Rate 2.8% for March

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NEWS RELEASE | FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | May 6, 2026

North Dakota’s Unemployment Rate 2.8% for March

BISMARCK, N.D. – Job Service North Dakota reported that labor statistics released today showed a gain of 1,400 jobs over-the-year in March, and an unemployment rate of 2.8 percent. North Dakota gained just over 5,600 entering the labor force since the prior year. The state’s civilian labor force participation rate for March was 69.6 percent, higher than the national rate of 61.9 percent.

 

In addition to the gain in jobs over-the-year in North Dakota, we saw an increase over-the-month of 2,200 (0.5 percent). Labor force also increased from February to March by 404.
The national not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for March was 4.3 percent. It was 4.2 percent the prior year.
North Dakota Not Seasonally Adjusted Labor Force Data
	Mar 2026	Feb 2026	Mar 2025
Unemployment Rate	2.8%	3.1%	3.1%
Labor Force Participation Rate	69.6%	69.6%	69.3%
Unemployed	12,135	13,282	13,237
Employed	420,881	419,330	414,136
Labor Force	433,016	432,612	427,373
The nation’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.3 percent for the month, 0.1 of a percentage point higher than the prior year. The seasonally adjusted rate for North Dakota was 2.5 percent, 0.1 of a percentage point lower than the prior year. The seasonal adjustment process uses a statistical adjustment to accommodate predictable fluctuations between months such as length of daylight and typical weather, allowing for comparison between all months of a year.
North Dakota ranked 3rd among all states’ unemployment rates at 2.5 percent. South Dakota had the lowest unemployment rate at 2.3 percent.
Seasonally Adjusted Unemployment Rates
	Mar 2026	Feb 2026	Mar 2025
North Dakota	2.5%	2.6%	2.6%
United States	4.3%	4.4%	4.2%

North Dakota’s Nonfarm Employment

Preliminary estimates indicate North Dakota’s March 2026 not seasonally adjusted employment increased 0.5 percent (+2,200) over-the-month and increased 0.3 percent (+1,400) over-the-year.

 

Six of the 13 major industries reported year-over-year employment increases, led by Private Educational and Health Services posting a gain of 1,600 jobs (+2.2 percent). The Health Care and Social Assistance subsector contributed the largest portion of this increase. Other top super sector employment increases were reported in Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities (+800), Other Services (+800), Professional and Business Services (+700), and Government (+300).

Top employment decreases over-the-year were reported in Wholesale Trade (-1,000), Leisure and Hospitality (-500), Financial Activities (-500), Mining and Logging (-500), Manufacturing (-200), and Information (-200).

 

 

 

METRO AREAS
Three of the four North Dakota metro areas reported increases in annual employment. Fargo posted the largest change in employment, with a loss of 1,200 jobs. Bismarck posted a gain of 900 jobs. Grand Forks and Minot followed with employment gains of 500 and 200, respectively.
FARGO
●	Top employment gains: Private Educational and Health Services (+500), Retail Trade (+100), and Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities (+100).
●	Top employment losses: Leisure and Hospitality (-500) and Financial Activities (-500).
BISMARCK
●	Top employment gains: Professional and Business Services (+500) and Private Educational and Health Services (+300).
●	Top employment losses: Wholesale Trade (-200), Leisure and Hospitality (-100), and Financial Activities (-100).
GRAND FORKS
●	Top employment gains: Professional and Business Services (+400) and Mining, Logging, and Construction (+200).
●	Top employment losses: Government (-200) and Private Educational and Health Services (-100).
MINOT
●	Top employment gains: Government (+400), Manufacturing (+100), and Leisure and Hospitality (+100).
●	Top employment losses: Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities (-100), Retail Trade (-100), Wholesale Trade (-100), and Mining, Logging, and Construction (-100).

Notes:

 

1.     The unemployment rate is the percentage of people actively seeking work compared to those in the labor force (employed plus unemployed).

2.     Data are subject to revision.

3.     The Job Service North Dakota Labor Market Information Center produced these statistics using the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ nationally-required standard methodology.

4.     Labor Force data for county and substate areas will be posted on 5-13-2026 to the Labor Market Information website: https://www.ndlmi.com.

5.     Nonfarm Employment (CES) is a monthly estimate of nonfarm employment. It is benchmarked to actual data annually.

6.     The Current Employment Statistics (CES) Survey, conducted by the BLS, is a monthly establishment survey of about 140,000 businesses and government agencies, which cover approximately 490,000 individual worksites. The main objective of the CES Survey is to estimate nonfarm employment, hours and earnings at place of work for the entire Nation, individual States, and metropolitan areas. The survey, is a stratified, simple random sample of worksites where the sample strata, or subpopulations, are defined by state, industry, and employment size, yielding a state-based design. The establishment survey, like other sample surveys, is subject to sampling and nonsampling error.

7.     The Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program produces monthly employment and unemployment estimates for approximately 7,500 geographic areas, which include all States, labor market areas, counties, cities with a population of 25,000 or more, and all cities and towns in New England, regardless of population. LAUS estimates are designed to reflect the labor force concepts embodied in the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly sample survey of households. The survey statistics on the labor force status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years of age and over. CPS data are collected each month from a probability sample of approximately 60,000 yield estimates of demographic, social, and economic characteristics of the population.

 

 

 

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For more information, contact:

Marcia Havens, Labor Market Information Manager

Phone: 701-328-4029        |     Email: meha...@nd.gov      |    ndlmi.com

 

 

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