The local unemployment rate is trending downward and about half of what it was a year ago.

In Warren County, the seasonally adjusted rate was 5.8 percent in May, according to the latest data released Tuesday by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.

In May 2020, the rate was 11.2 percent.

The May 2021 rate is lower than both the April — 6.5 percent — and March — 7.0 percent — rates, showing a positive trend.

The local rate is the lowest in the region, lower than the state average, and equal to the national average.

According to Labor and Industry, Meadville had 6.0 percent unemployment, Bradford 6.3 percent, Oil City 6.6 percent, Erie 7.4 percent, and Forest County 7.8 percent in May.

The state-wide average was 6.9 percent and nationally about 5.8 percent of workers were unemployed.

With respect to types of jobs, there were more people employed in May 2021 than May 2021 across the board. The greatest gains were an estimated 300 in both education and hospitality.

Compared to April, there were 200 more people employed in goods-producing jobs, including 100 in manufacturing, in May.

According to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics at the U.S. Department of Labor, seasonal adjustment “is a statistical technique that attempts to measure and remove the influences of predictable seasonal patterns to reveal how employment and unemployment changes from month-to-month.”

“These seasonal adjustments make it easier to observe the cyclical, underlying trend and other nonseasonal movements in the series,” making it possible to make month-to-month comparisons.