Isle jobless
rate falls

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

Hawaii had more people working last month than in any month since July 1993.

The state's unemployment level fell to 6.3 percent last month, compared with 7 percent in July 1997, according to figures from the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. The June 1998 rate was 6.6 percent. However, Hawaii's rate was still above the national average, which was 4.7 percent last month.

The job force last month was 603,200, and 565,300 of them had work, leaving 37,900 jobless. In July 1997, the job force was 599,650 and 557,900 had jobs, leaving 41,750 jobless.

While the employment figure, gathered from a limited survey of households, showed improvement there was a decline in the statistic that economists consider more important -- the number of nonagricultural wage and salary jobs.

That number, drawn from a broad survey of employers, declined by 5,800 jobs from June, to 521,700 jobs last month.

The July jobless rates on individual islands, compared with July 1997, were: Oahu, 5.3 percent, down from 5.7 percent; the Big Island, 10.1 percent, vs. 12.1 percent; Kauai, 9.4 percent, down from 11.2 percent; Maui 6.4 percent, vs. 7.5 percent; Molokai, 16.9 percent, down from 17.6 percent; and Lanai 3.4 percent vs. 6.6 percent.