    Nebraska’s preliminary unemployment rate for September rose a tenth of a point to 2.1%, the 6th-lowest rate in the country.
It’s half a point lower than a year ago and 1.4-points under the national rate for September.
The jobless rate for both Lincoln and Grand Island was 1.9% – a tenth of a point higher than in August and 2-tenths lower than a year ago for both cities.
Omaha’s rate was 2.3%, up a tenth a point for the month and down a tenth from last year, while the Scottsbluff micropolitan statistical area came in at 2.1% for a drop of 1-tenth for the month and 2-tenths from a year ago.
State figures are adjusted for seasonal factors while local figures are not, making comparisons between the two meaningless.
Labor Commissioner John Albin says the number of manufacturing jobs in Nebraska remains strong and actually increased last month to remain above 100,000 – just as it has been every month since last October.
Manufacturing isn’t the only part of the state economy with good employment numbers. Nonfarm employment, a count of filled jobs, totalled 1,046,908 in September. That’s up 4,738 from August and 15,249 more than a year ago.
The private industry sector with the most growth for the month was Private Education and Health Services – up 1,903 jobs.
The sectors adding the most jobs in the past year were again Private Education and Health Services (up 4,602 jobs) and Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (up 3,620 jobs).