That was “primarily due to residents reentering the labor force after a long absence,” New Hampshire Employment Security said in its monthly release.

From February to March, the total labor force increased by 1,740 to 765,350. This was an increase of 7,710 New Hampshire residents from March 2023.

There were 745,440 employed residents, an increase of 1,700 from the previous month and an increase of 1,490 from March 2023.

The state’s nonfarm employment for March was 706,600, which is 800 more jobs than in February and 9,700 more jobs than in March 2023.

Private industry accounted for 618,100 of these jobs in March 2024. That was 600 more jobs higher than in February and 7,500 more jobs than in March 2023.

Nationally, the unemployment rate stood at 3.8% in March compared to 3.9% in February and 3.5% in March 2023.