- Utah's January employment data, delayed by a government shutdown, shows slower growth than last year.
- The state added 10,500 jobs in 2025, with a 3.8% unemployment rate.
- Normal data release resumes May 22; future data crucial for 2026 job trends.
SALT LAKE CITY — After a multiple-month delay caused by last year's federal government shutdown, the Utah Department of Workforce Services on Wednesday released January employment data for the Beehive State.
"The effects of the shutdown will continue over the next two months, in a series of later-than-usual releases of our upcoming February and March numbers," said Ben Crabb, the department's chief economist. "The normal release schedule will finally return on May 22, with the release of April's numbers."
As for the data, Crabb said annual benchmarking revealed that Utah's job market was growing more slowly than initially estimated over 2025.
Over the course of the year, the state added 10,500 new jobs — a 0.6% expansion, which is higher than the national growth of 0.2%.
Additionally, January's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is estimated at 3.8%, only a 0.1% increase from December, with 69,200 Utahns unemployed, up from 61,400 last year. Utah's unemployment rate also remained lower than the national rate of 4.3%.
"While the labor market slowdown is becoming more widespread, the state's unemployment rate remains in low territory at 3.8%, and the overall job count continues to expand," Crabb said.
With limited data available due to the shutdown, Crabb said the next few months of data will be crucial for clarifying the direction the job market is headed in 2026.
