Positive news. What I really like to see is that it appears that more people are coming off of the sidelines and entering the labor market.

Wisconsin added 9,100 private sector jobs in July and the state’s unemployment rate remained 2.9 percent, according to federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data released by the state Department of Workforce Development.

An increase of 2,800 jobs in leisure and hospitality, 2,400 in durable goods manufacturing and 2,300 in education and health services helped drive the increase.

Professional and business services was the only sector with a decrease in employment, down 1,300. Government employment was also down 400.

The state’s labor force participation rate remained unchanged at 68.9 percent. The number of people classified as unemployed increased 1,800 to 92,900. Overall employment decreased 2,000.