There were 47,002 few people employed in March when compared to the same month a year ago.

This is according to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, citing data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Indiana’s total labor force in March was 3,296,498, with 3,142,694 employed and 153,805 unemployed. In March 2020, Indiana’s labor force totaled 3,313,299, with 3,189,696 employed and 123,603 unemployed.

The state’s jobless rate in March was 3.9%, down from 4% in February, but higher than the March 2020 jobless rate of 3.3%. The U.S. jobless rate in March was 6%, down from 6.2% in February, but higher than the 4.4% rate logged in March 2020.

There was some fluctuation in jobless rates in some metro areas across Northwest and North Central Indiana in March.

The Elkhart-Goshen area’s jobless rate in March was 3.5%, which was unchanged from February, but higher than the March 2020 jobless rate of 3.1%.

The Gary area’s March jobless rate was 6.9%, up from 6.8% in February and higher than the March 2020 jobless rate of 5.5%.

The jobless rate in the Michigan City-La Porte area in March was 6.7%, down from 6.9% in February, but higher than the March 2020 rate of 5%.

In the South Bend-Mishawaka area, the jobless rate in March was 5.3%, down from 5.4% in February but up from March 2020’s rate of 4.1%.