Report: State Unemployment Rate Continues Climb As CT Adds 500 Jobs In May

by Jamil Ragland

HARTFORD, CT — Connecticut’s unemployment rate ticked upward for the fifth straight month as job growth weakened in May.

The latest jobs report shows the state added just 500 jobs in May, less than one eighth of the number of jobs created the month before. Connecticut’s unemployment rate rose by 0.1% to 5.1%. Connecticut remains above the national unemployment rate, currently sitting at 4.3%.

Connecticut’s job growth in April was also revised downward by nearly 25%, adjusted to 4,300 jobs created instead of the preliminary report of 5,700 jobs. 

Commissioner Danté Bartolomeo of the Connecticut Department of Labor said that the state’s economy is demonstrating resilience despite national pressures, but said job seekers were facing challenges. 

“Connecticut’s economy remains stable with employers adding jobs again this month,” she said. “Job seekers remain challenged by slower hiring — it takes longer to find a job than it did in recent years, but employers are adding jobs across industries.”

According to the jobs report, losses in the professional & business services; trade, transportation & utilities; and construction & mining supersectors overtook gains in the education & health services and leisure & hospitality supersectors, the only two of the state’s ten major industry supersectors to show job growth. 

The government supersector posted the largest gains of the month, adding 1,300 jobs in May. Most of this gain comes from local government employees resuming full work schedules after returning from vacation. At the federal level, the state lost over a thousand employees as the Trump administration continues to reduce employees across the federal government. 

“While some months have been stronger than others, Connecticut has added over 7,000 jobs so far this year and total jobs are at an all-time high,” said Patrick Flaherty, director of the Office of Research at the Connecticut Department of Labor. “Unemployment insurance claims remain low which suggests that the rise in the unemployment rate is not being caused by layoffs.”

Republicans and business leaders expressed skepticism of claims that the economy is doing fine. 

FILE PHOTO — Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding addresses the media outside the Senate chamber on Feb. 25, 2026 at the State Capitol in Hartford, CT. Credit: Donald Eng

Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding, R-Brookfield, said Democratic control of state government has led Connecticut to become unaffordable, and claimed that Democrats would raise taxes on job creators. 

“We are seeing job losses across a variety of key industries,” he said. “Nearly 12,000 people in Connecticut stopped looking for jobs in just the last month alone. Does anyone think the affordability crisis will get better under one-party rule? It will get worse.” 

Chris DiPentima, president and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA), said that the losses in certain job sectors made him concerned about perceived long-term, structural weaknesses in the state’s job market.

Chris DiPentima

“While the state saw modest job gains overall in May, there were concerning declines in key industry sectors, including professional and business services and trade, transportation, and utilities,” he said. 

DiPentima said the shrinking labor force is not only a jobs issue, but also strikes at the state’s overall competitiveness.

“It’s critical that policymakers take meaningful, sustainable action to reverse Connecticut’s affordability crisis. “Without solutions that reduce costs in areas including healthcare, housing, and energy, Connecticut will continue to struggle to attract and retain the workforce needed to grow the economy.”