WAILUKU - The unemployment rate for Maui County in July was 4.4 percent, a decline of 0.2 points from June.
Overall, unemployment is still up, compared to a rate of 3.1 percent in July 2007.
And the figures released Thursday by the State Department of Labor and Industrial Relations do not include the elimination of 274 positions by Maui Land & Pineapple Co. While the layoffs were announced July 25, they will not take effect until September.
Statewide, seasonally adjusted unemployment was at 3.9 percent, up slightly from 3.8 percent in June. Only Hawaii County had a higher jobless rate than Maui County, at 5.8 percent. But Maui County still had lower unemployment than the rest of the country, with a rate of 5.7 percent for the U.S. as a whole. Individually, Molokai (11.9 percent) and Lanai (5.2 percent) had higher unemployment than Maui island (4.2 percent).
Statewide, total seasonally adjusted nonagricultural jobs declined over the month from June by 3,100 to 622,900. The construction industry recorded a gain of 100 jobs for the state, while trade, transportation and utilities lost 800 jobs, according to the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. The leisure and hospitality industry also recorded a 400-job loss.
"Hawaii's job numbers continue to reflect the effects of external economic conditions on our economy," Colleen Y. LaClair, deputy director of Labor and Industrial Relations, said. "We are encouraged that Hawaii continues to post unemployment rates significantly lower than the U.S. average."
