Employment and Workforce Executive Director William Floyd’s Statement

January 2025 Employment Situation

Columbia, S.C. – “South Carolina started the year strong with increases in employment from December to January to a record 2,439,684 residents employed statewide,” said the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW) Executive Director William Floyd. “More specifically, the state’s labor force increased more than 42,700 since the previous January, demonstrating continued optimism in the workforce. The unemployment rate dropped slightly from 4.4 percent in December to 4.3 percent in January while payrolls grew by approximately 4,500 jobs month-over-month. With notable increases in construction, manufacturing, and retail trade, South Carolina is continuing to experience stable levels of growth consistent with a healthy labor market.” 

“As our agency started 2025, we encouraged citizens ready to make a change to think about a New Year. New Career. Whether it is an educational opportunity, an apprenticeship or internship, a new job, upskilling, or more, South Carolina is full of partners and programs to help people find work and advance their careers.” said Floyd. 

“Throughout the rest of 2025, our agency will continue highlighting South Carolina’s industries and opportunities such as healthcare, internships, part-time and seasonal work for teens, veterans, and more. The best way to find services such as direct connection to employers, job fairs, hiring events, local businesses that are recruiting, resume assistance, workshops and training, and more is to contact your local SC Works Center. Partner representatives are there to help you with personalized services and support,” concluded Floyd. 

As a reminder, in February of each year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) conducts its annual revision of national estimates from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) and the Current Employment Statistics (CES) monthly survey. For that reason, numbers for January 2025 will be released on March 17 and numbers for February 2025 will be released on March 28. Because the release of monthly employment numbers are estimates that are captured to provide immediate information and trends of the employment status, the benchmarking period allows BLS to revise or adjust these estimates. Some numbers may be adjusted, as they are each year, as BLS has more time to vet the data. 

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The S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce is putting South Carolinians to work. The agency has four missions: (1) workforce development; (2) free job match employment services; (3) unemployment insurance; and (4) labor market information. All four missions contribute to workforce development in South Carolina. The agency is dedicated to advancing South Carolina through services and programs that meet the needs of our businesses, job seekers, and those looking to advance their careers.