In March 2025 the Philadelphia’s labor force reached to a record 790,364, up 4,943 from February, while employment climbed by 6,639 to 753,103. The narrowing gap left 37,261 residents unemployed,making the unemployment rate dipping down to 4.7 % (from 5.0 % in both January and February). Yet this modest improvement of unemployment rate still exceeded the rates in the first-quarter of 2023 and 2024.
Across industry sectors, the picture diverged. Education and Health Services again predominated the workforce market. Employment of Professional and Business Services and Retail Trade remained steady while Leisure and Hospitality and Manufacturing maintained the similar level in the first quarter without significant expansion. Wage growth underscored another story. Trade and Transportation led Pennsylvania with a 6 % annual wage gain to $28.69 an hour, and both Education & Health and Mining & Constructionshowed solid gains. Manufacturing, by contrast, slipped 0.6 % to $32.92.
Inflation offered another mixed signal. Core prices (excluding food and energy) rose 0.6 % in Q1 2025, driven predominantly by a 0.5 % uptick in shelter costs,astight housing supply kept rents and owner-equivalent rents stubbornly elevated.
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