January 5, 2012 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Metro area employment and unemployment, November 2011

Metropolitan area unemployment rate comparisons, versus prior year and U.S. unemployment rate, November 2011, not seasonally adjusted
Comparison	Number of areas (p)
Metropolitan area unemployment rates compared to U.S. unemployment rate of 8.2 percent (November 2011)
Below	224
Above	137
Equal	11
Metropolitan area unemployment rates compared to prior year unemployment rate (November 2010)
Higher	16
Lower	351
Unchanged	5
Footnotes: (p) preliminary

Employer-sponsored healthcare coverage across wage groups
A look at the relationship between employee wages and access to, participation in, and costs of employer-sponsored medical, dental, and vision care benefit plans.
Sports and Exercise
A look at participation and time spent in sports and exercise activities.
Women at Work
A look at women's labor force participation and earnings, how women spend their time and money, the nature of fatal work injuries, and labor force projections for the future.
STEM occupations: past, present, and future
A look at employment and wages in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics occupations.