Saint Louis Job News & Opportunities St. Louis Front Page is a weekly news publication, with daily updates, spotlighting attractions, events, business and hospitality in St. Louis, Missouri and Southwest Illinois. St. Louis News Community Info St. Louis Job News St. Louis CitySide Business News St. Charles News Southwest, IL News Fairview Heights,IL Art Gallery News Hotel News Restaurant News Style St. Louis Not Just For Kids   Downtown Map America's Center Busch Stadium Gateway Arch Savvis Center Laclede's Landing Old Courthouse Union Station Washington Avenue   Metropolitan Map Casinos Clayton, MO Grand Center Grant's Farm Forest Park Kimmswick, MO MO Botanical Garden Soulard St. Charles, MO West Port Plaza Transportation Lambert Airport How To Reach Us: St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com Payroll Employment Increases in Metropolitan Areas During November ST. LOUIS, (SLFP.com), January 1, 2006 - Payroll employment increased seasonally in most of Missouri's metropolitan areas in November as retail stores ramped up for the holiday season and schools reached peak employment for the fall semester. The largest increase was in the St. Louis metropolitan area which added 6,400 jobs. Retail trade employment was up by 5,700 jobs including substantial gains in general merchandise and clothing stores. Health care and social assistance added 1,100 jobs while local government grew by 1,000, mostly in the public schools. Employment increased by 2,000 jobs in the Kansas City metropolitan area with significant gains in retail trade and local government. Meanwhile, the Columbia metropolitan area saw an increase of 700 jobs; Joplin employment grew by 300 jobs; Jefferson City gained 200 jobs while St. Joseph added 100 jobs. Springfield saw employment drop by 100 jobs with small gains in retail trade and government that were offset by decreases in construction, manufacturing, and leisure and hospitality. Statewide, Missouri payrolls grew by 3,500 jobs in November, bringing to total 28,100 new jobs created since January. During the past year, employment grew in all of Missouri's metropolitan areas. St. Louis saw the largest employment increase by gaining 8,400 jobs or 0.6 percent while Columbia had the largest percentage increase at 2.7 percent or 2,400 jobs. Kansas City added 5,300 jobs, Springfield added 2,900 jobs, St. Joseph added 800 jobs, Joplin added 400 jobs and Jefferson City added 200 jobs. Over the past year, St. Louis employment increased by 3,800 jobs in health care and social assistance and by 2,300 in durable goods manufacturing. Kansas City employment growth included 4,400 jobs in natural resources, mining and construction. Private service-providing industries experienced strong growth in Columbia, Jefferson City and Springfield. Government employment was generally weak, with state government employment down in Jefferson City and both state and local government employment decreasing in St. Louis. However, local government (including public schools) increased in Joplin, St. Joseph and Springfield. Unemployment increased in all areas of the state in November, paralleling the increase in Missouri's figure of six-tenths of a point to 5.6 percent. Among metropolitan areas, Kansas City had the highest rate at 5.6 percent while Columbia's 3.5 percent was the lowest rate. St. Joseph experienced the largest increase: 0.9 percentage point with the other metropolitan rates increasing by 0.5 to 0.7 percent. Micropolitan area rates ranged from 3.3 in Maryville to 7.7 in Kennett. For counties, the lowest rates were 3.3 in Nodaway, 3.5 in Boone and Knox, 3.6 in McDonald, 3.8 in Christian, and 3.9 in Scotland and St. Charles. The highest county rate was 8.7 percent in Linn, followed by 8.5 in Pemiscot, 8.3 in St. Louis City, and 8.1 in Reynolds and Washington counties. Archived: 'Tis the Season for Career Resolutions U.S. Workers' Optimism Surfaces After Tough Year Survey Shows Almost 70 Per Cent of Employee Email May Pose a Threat to Businesses Missouri Unemployment Remains at Lowest Level in Four Years Small Employers Offer More Flexibility; Large Employers Offer More Benefits Offsite Workers Feel Less Connected With Employers    The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2008 Moore Design Group .