Forty-three jobs. That is all the Rochester area added in the twelve months to August 2026, according to the latest jobs report from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, which KTTC and KROC-AM both covered. The percentage change was 0.0.
The Rochester metropolitan statistical area is a region, not just the city. It takes in Olmsted, Wabasha, Fillmore and Dodge counties. KROC’s Andy Brownell described the local job market as stagnant, with employment essentially unchanged from August 2025.
Where the growth went
The state report shows gains bunched in two places. The Mankato area posted the fastest growth in Minnesota at 3.9 percent, a gain of 2,194 jobs. The Minneapolis-St. Paul area added 27,540 jobs, up 1.4 percent, the biggest absolute increase.
Elsewhere the picture was mixed. Using July figures for areas that cross state lines, KTTC listed these changes:
Fargo-Moorhead added 1,300 jobs, or 0.9 percent. Grand Forks-East Grand Forks added 700, up 1.3 percent. La Crosse-Onalaska added 600, up 0.7 percent. Rochester’s 43 jobs left it in positive territory, though barely.
Only two areas lost jobs
Duluth and St. Cloud were the only two Minnesota metro areas to lose jobs over the year. Duluth-Superior shed 77 positions, or 0.1 percent. St. Cloud lost 876 jobs, a drop of 0.8 percent. KROC reported that St. Cloud’s employment fell by just under 900.
The statewide view
Minnesota as a whole did better than its slowest regions. KROC reported that the state added just over 44,000 jobs during the past year, an annualized growth rate of 1.5 percent, which it put at three times the national average. In August itself the state gained approximately 1,500 jobs.
Not every number pointed up. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose a tenth of a percentage point in August to 4.4 percent, against 3.9 percent a year earlier. Minnesota’s labor force shrank by a little over 2,500 people and now totals about 3.1 million. The labor force participation rate slipped a tenth of a point to 66.8 percent. The report notes that participation was up to 70 percent just before the COVID-19 pandemic began.
The next monthly report will show whether Rochester stays barely above zero or follows Duluth and St. Cloud into the red.
Sources
- Rochester sees slow growth in August jobs numbers
- Rochester Area Employment Flat as Minnesota Adds Jobs
