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Jobless Rate Rises In Pennsylvania For Second Straight Month

Gov. Tom Wolf visits a waste gas fabricating company in Fairless Hills, Pa., on Jan. 15, 2016. Manufacturing jobs in Pennsylvania are at their lowest number in nearly 30 years.

The number of people unemployed in Pennsylvania is up slightly over the past month, increasing by 8,000.

The state Labor and Industry Department issued seasonally adjusted data Friday showing the Pennsylvania's jobless rate rose one tenth of a percentage point to 5 percent in May, up from 4.9 percent in April.

It's the second month in a row the figure has increased. The national rate is 4.3 percent, down by one tenth of a point from the prior month.

The largest drop in jobs occurred in the construction field, which shed 4,300 positions. The biggest gainer was in leisure and hospitality, up 3,100 jobs.

Manufacturing jobs are at their lowest number since at least 1990.

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