The State and Regional Employment report for July, released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), shows little change over the last month. A majority of states experienced unemployment rate declines and job growth.
“While the march toward full employment continues in most states, we should continue to pay attention to disparities among workers of different races and ethnicities,” said Economic Analyst Janelle Jones. “Although job growth was fairly widespread across the country, conditions vary greatly across states.”
From April to July, 45 states added jobs, with North Dakota (1.8 percent), Minnesota (1.1 percent), Nevada (1.1 percent), North Carolina (1.1 percent), and Rhode Island (0.9 percent) having the highest percent change in job growth. Similar to the last two months’ reports, North Dakota had the largest percent growth of jobs. Over the last three months, the number of jobs fell in five states and the District of Columbia: Alaska (-0.6 percent), Vermont (-0.5 percent), Indiana (-0.2 percent), Louisiana (-0.2 percent), Mississippi (-0.2 percent), and the District of Columbia (-0.1 percent). For the second month in a row, Alaska had the largest percent decline in the number of jobs.
From April to July, unemployment rates fell in 28 states. New Mexico (-0.7 percentage points), South Carolina (-0.6 percentage points), Pennsylvania (-0.5 percentage points), Michigan (-0.4 percentage points), and Rhode Island (-0.4 percentage points) saw the largest declines in unemployment rates. The unemployment rate increased in 13 states— up from 10 states in last month’s report. The largest increases in unemployment rates occurred in Louisiana (0.4 percentage points), Alabama (0.3 percentage points), Kentucky (0.3 percentage points), Maine (0.3 percentage points), and Ohio (0.3 percentage points).
Current state unemployment rate and percent change in total number of jobs over last 12 months
| State | Current unemployment rate | Change in unemployment rate in last 3 months | Change in unemployment rate in last 12 months | Change in unemployment rate since February 2020 | State unemployment rate raking from lowest to highest | Percent change in number of jobs in last 12 months | Change in number of jobs in last 12 months | Percent change in numbers of jobs in last 3 months | Change in number of jobs in last 3 months | Percent change in number of jobs since February 2020 | Change in number of jobs since February 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 2.1% | -0.1% | -0.5% | -1.3% | 7 | 2.0% | 42500 | 0.7% | 14300 | 3.5% | 72800 |
| Alaska | 3.8% | 0.1% | 0.0% | -1.4% | 43 | 1.6% | 5200 | -0.1% | -400 | -1.5% | -4800 |
| Arizona | 3.6% | 0.2% | -0.3% | -1.4% | 41 | 1.8% | 56600 | 0.1% | 3700 | 5.4% | 162300 |
| Arkansas | 2.6% | -0.2% | -0.7% | -1.0% | 14 | 1.8% | 24300 | 0.6% | 8200 | 5.3% | 68800 |
| California | 4.6% | 0.1% | 0.8% | 0.5% | 49 | 2.0% | 363600 | 0.4% | 76000 | 2.4% | 424200 |
| Colorado | 2.9% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 23 | 1.4% | 38800 | 0.4% | 11200 | 3.1% | 88200 |
| Connecticut | 3.6% | -0.2% | -0.4% | 0.2% | 40 | 1.3% | 21400 | 0.3% | 5700 | -0.4% | -6800 |
| Delaware | 4.1% | -0.2% | -0.3% | 0.4% | 48 | 2.4% | 11200 | -0.1% | -400 | 3.0% | 14200 |
| Washington D.C. | 5.0% | 0.0% | 0.9% | -0.4% | 50 | 0.9% | 6600 | 0.3% | 2200 | -3.8% | -30400 |
| Florida | 2.7% | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 19 | 3.2% | 300600 | 0.6% | 63000 | 7.7% | 696100 |
| Georgia | 3.2% | 0.1% | 0.2% | -0.4% | 29 | 1.8% | 88300 | 0.3% | 14400 | 5.2% | 241900 |
| Hawaii | 2.8% | -0.5% | -0.7% | 0.6% | 22 | 2.0% | 12700 | 0.8% | 4900 | -4.1% | -27500 |
| Idaho | 2.8% | 0.2% | 0.1% | -0.2% | 21 | 2.8% | 23600 | 0.8% | 6800 | 10.2% | 78800 |
| Illinois | 4.0% | -0.2% | -0.4% | 0.2% | 46 | 1.5% | 89700 | 0.4% | 26300 | 0.1% | 8900 |
| Indiana | 3.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | -0.1% | 32 | 1.8% | 57500 | 0.3% | 10500 | 3.1% | 98900 |
| Iowa | 2.7% | 0.0% | -0.1% | 0.1% | 18 | 0.9% | 14400 | -0.7% | -11200 | -0.3% | -5100 |
| Kansas | 2.7% | -0.2% | 0.0% | -0.4% | 17 | 1.6% | 23100 | 0.2% | 2600 | 1.1% | 16200 |
| Kentucky | 3.8% | 0.1% | -0.1% | -0.3% | 42 | 2.6% | 50200 | 0.5% | 10400 | 2.8% | 54100 |
| Louisiana | 3.4% | -0.2% | -0.1% | -1.8% | 35 | 1.6% | 30200 | -0.1% | -1400 | -1.8% | -36400 |
| Maine | 2.4% | 0.0% | -0.3% | -0.4% | 9 | 0.5% | 3200 | -0.4% | -2500 | 0.5% | 3100 |
| Maryland | 1.8% | -0.7% | -1.4% | -2.4% | 3 | 0.8% | 21100 | 0.2% | 5800 | -1.4% | -39500 |
| Massachusetts | 2.5% | -0.6% | -1.2% | -0.4% | 12 | 2.4% | 90300 | 0.6% | 21200 | 1.1% | 41100 |
| Michigan | 3.6% | -0.2% | -0.5% | -0.2% | 39 | 1.4% | 63100 | 0.3% | 13600 | -0.3% | -13500 |
| Minnesota | 3.0% | 0.2% | 0.4% | -0.9% | 26 | 1.4% | 41200 | 0.1% | 3600 | -0.4% | -12900 |
| Mississippi | 3.0% | -0.4% | -0.8% | -2.7% | 25 | 0.3% | 3200 | -0.4% | -5000 | 0.9% | 11000 |
| Missouri | 2.7% | 0.2% | 0.5% | -0.6% | 16 | 2.0% | 58900 | 0.9% | 27200 | 2.6% | 75800 |
| Montana | 2.5% | 0.2% | -0.2% | -1.2% | 11 | 0.5% | 2700 | -0.4% | -2300 | 5.2% | 25400 |
| Nebraska | 2.0% | 0.0% | -0.4% | -1.0% | 6 | 2.0% | 20100 | 0.3% | 3600 | 1.3% | 13800 |
| Nevada | 5.3% | -0.1% | 0.0% | 1.3% | 51 | 3.8% | 56500 | 0.7% | 10600 | 6.9% | 100400 |
| New Hampshire | 1.7% | -0.4% | -0.8% | -1.0% | 1 | 1.5% | 10400 | -0.2% | -1300 | 1.2% | 8600 |
| New Jersey | 3.9% | 0.4% | 0.7% | 0.4% | 45 | 1.7% | 73300 | 0.2% | 9100 | 2.5% | 106700 |
| New Mexico | 3.6% | 0.1% | 0.0% | -1.8% | 38 | 2.6% | 21700 | 0.6% | 5100 | 1.0% | 8900 |
| New York | 3.9% | -0.1% | -0.1% | 0.0% | 44 | 1.3% | 124900 | 0.4% | 35600 | -1.4% | -142100 |
| North Carolina | 3.3% | -0.1% | -0.4% | -0.4% | 31 | 2.2% | 108000 | 0.7% | 33300 | 6.7% | 308000 |
| North Dakota | 2.0% | -0.1% | 0.0% | -0.2% | 5 | 2.0% | 8800 | 1.0% | 4500 | -0.5% | -2300 |
| Ohio | 3.3% | -0.4% | -0.7% | -1.3% | 30 | 1.6% | 89200 | 0.6% | 31200 | 0.5% | 25400 |
| Oklahoma | 2.7% | -0.2% | -0.4% | -0.5% | 15 | 1.7% | 28400 | 0.4% | 6700 | 1.7% | 29800 |
| Oregon | 3.4% | -0.6% | -0.7% | 0.0% | 34 | 2.6% | 49900 | 0.8% | 16700 | 1.7% | 33300 |
| Pennsylvania | 3.5% | -0.6% | -0.8% | -1.5% | 36 | 2.4% | 143100 | 0.6% | 34400 | 0.9% | 53300 |
| Rhode Island | 2.8% | -0.2% | -0.4% | -0.9% | 20 | -1.1% | -5600 | -0.4% | -1900 | -2.8% | -14200 |
| South Carolina | 3.1% | 0.0% | -0.1% | 0.2% | 28 | 2.3% | 52900 | 0.6% | 14300 | 4.9% | 108500 |
| South Dakota | 1.9% | 0.0% | -0.2% | -0.7% | 4 | 1.6% | 7400 | -0.1% | -300 | 4.0% | 17600 |
| Tennessee | 3.1% | -0.2% | -0.2% | -0.5% | 27 | 2.2% | 72400 | 0.6% | 19600 | 5.6% | 175200 |
| Texas | 4.1% | 0.1% | 0.3% | 0.6% | 47 | 3.3% | 441700 | 0.7% | 101400 | 7.7% | 1002900 |
| Utah | 2.4% | 0.1% | 0.1% | -0.2% | 8 | 2.4% | 40700 | 0.3% | 4900 | 9.6% | 151000 |
| Vermont | 1.8% | -0.6% | -0.7% | -0.8% | 2 | 0.7% | 2100 | -0.4% | -1300 | -2.4% | -7500 |
| Virginia | 2.5% | -0.6% | -0.1% | -0.2% | 10 | 1.6% | 64400 | 0.2% | 7100 | 1.3% | 54400 |
| Washington | 3.6% | -0.7% | -0.5% | -0.3% | 37 | 2.6% | 92500 | 0.3% | 11400 | 3.3% | 117800 |
| West Virginia | 3.4% | 0.1% | -0.6% | -1.7% | 33 | 1.0% | 6800 | 0.3% | 2100 | -2.8% | -20200 |
| Wisconsin | 2.6% | 0.2% | -0.4% | -0.4% | 13 | 1.3% | 39500 | 0.2% | 5300 | 0.4% | 11300 |
| Wyoming | 3.0% | -0.5% | -0.5% | -1.9% | 24 | 2.2% | 6200 | 0.8% | 2200 | 0.5% | 1400 |
Jobs refers to the total number of jobs, part-time or full-time, in nonfarm establishments.
Source: EPI analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics' Local Area Unemployment Statistics data.