Unemployment in the Nashville metropolitan area fell again in March, off slightly from the prior month and down three-tenths of a point from a year earlier. Nearly 630,000 of the area's labor force of 647,400 were on the job last month.
Low unemployment suggests a robust economy and presents opportunities for workers.
But it also drives up employee turnover and wage and training costs for companies as they scramble to attract and retain help. We're recruiting out of Murfreesboro and having to look even a little farther out just to find good, qualified people to fill our jobs. State officials attributed the change to the fact that Tennessee's pool of workers is growing faster than that of the rest of the nation. The service industry reported an increase of 3,800 new jobs in March. Construction had 1,900 new jobs, and trade was up by 1,300.