O'Malley touts state's monthly job gains

Governor Martin O'Malley Friday touted the increase of nearly 10,000 new jobs statewide during September, according to preliminary employment data from the U.S. Labor Department.

 

"Last month, Marylanders created 9,800 new jobs - the single greatest month of job creation in 29 months and the result of a thriving private sector that created 98 percent of all new jobs in September, " O'Malley said in a statement. "Together, we've driven our unemployment rate down to 6.9 percent, which remains 12 percent below the national average. This past year, we've created 25,500 new jobs and to date, Maryland has recovered over three-quarters of the jobs we've lost during the Bush recession."

 

According to the preliminary survey data, Maryland gained 9,800 jobs during September, topping last year's August to September gain of 9,500. This marks the largest gain for the month since 2003, with he private sector gaining 9,600 jobs. The preliminary jobs estimate for August showed an increase of 1,400 jobs. 

 

According to the BLS survey, Maryland's preliminary unemployment rate dropped two tenths of a percentage point to 6.9 percent.  August's unemployment rate remained unchanged with revision and held steady at 7.1 percent.