An official website of the United States government
United States Department of Labor
State unemployment rates in February 2013
April 03, 2013
Regional and state unemployment rates were little changed in February. Twenty-two states had unemployment rate decreases, 12 states had increases, and 16 states and the District of Columbia had no change.
| State | Unemployment rate (p) |
|---|---|
Alabama | 7.2 |
Alaska | 6.5 |
Arizona | 7.9 |
Arkansas | 7.2 |
California | 9.6 |
Colorado | 7.2 |
Connecticut | 8.0 |
Delaware | 7.2 |
District of Columbia | 8.6 |
Florida | 7.7 |
Georgia | 8.6 |
Hawaii | 5.2 |
Idaho | 6.2 |
Illinois | 9.5 |
Indiana | 8.7 |
Iowa | 5.0 |
Kansas | 5.5 |
Kentucky | 7.9 |
Louisiana | 6.0 |
Maine | 7.3 |
Maryland | 6.6 |
Massachusetts | 6.5 |
Michigan | 8.8 |
Minnesota | 5.5 |
Mississippi | 9.6 |
Missouri | 6.7 |
Montana | 5.6 |
Nebraska | 3.8 |
Nevada | 9.6 |
New Hampshire | 5.8 |
New Jersey | 9.3 |
New Mexico | 6.8 |
New York | 8.4 |
North Carolina | 9.4 |
North Dakota | 3.3 |
Ohio | 7.0 |
Oklahoma | 5.0 |
Oregon | 8.4 |
Pennsylvania | 8.1 |
Rhode Island | 9.4 |
South Carolina | 8.6 |
South Dakota | 4.4 |
Tennessee | 7.8 |
Texas | 6.4 |
Utah | 5.2 |
Vermont | 4.4 |
Virginia | 5.6 |
Washington | 7.5 |
West Virginia | 7.3 |
Wisconsin | 7.2 |
Wyoming | 4.9 |
Footnotes: | |
California, Mississippi, and Nevada had the highest unemployment rates among the states in February, 9.6 percent each. North Dakota again had the lowest jobless rate, 3.3 percent. In total, 22 states had jobless rates significantly lower than the U.S. figure of 7.7 percent, 11 states had measurably higher rates, and 17 states and the District of Columbia had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation.
Four states had statistically significant over-the-month unemployment rate declines in February: Rhode Island (-0.4 percentage point), Vermont (-0.3 point), and California and New Jersey (-0.2 point each). Two states had significant rate increases over the month: Illinois (+0.5 percentage point) and Wisconsin (+0.2 point). The remaining 44 states and the District of Columbia had jobless rates that were not measurably different from those of a month earlier, though some had changes that were at least as large numerically as the significant changes.
Nevada had the largest jobless rate decline from February 2012 (-2.2 percentage points). Seven additional states had smaller but also statistically significant decreases over the year: Florida and Idaho (-1.3 percentage points each); California (-1.2 points); Colorado and Hawaii (-1.0 point each); Washington (-0.9 point); and Texas (-0.7 point). The remaining 42 states and the District of of Columbia had unemployment rates that were not appreciably different from those of a year earlier.
These data are from the Current Employment Statistics (State and Metro Area) program. Data for the most recent month are preliminary and subject to change. To learn more, see “Regional and State Employment and Unemployment — February 2013” (HTML) (PDF), news release USDL-13-0544.
SUGGESTED CITATION
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, State unemployment rates in February 2013 on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2013/ted_20130403.htm (visited October 26, 2020).
OF INTEREST
Recent editions of Spotlight on Statistics
- Gulf War Era Veterans in the Labor Force
Examines the demographic, employment, and unemployment characteristics of civilians who served in the U.S. military during Gulf War era. - Using BLS Data to Match People with Disabilities with Jobs Presents data that can help increase access and opportunity for people with disabilities in the nation’s labor market.
- How Women and Aging Affect Trends in Labor Force Growth Examines how women’s labor force participation and the aging of the U.S. population affect trends in labor force growth.
- Meal Appeal: Patterns of Expenditures on Food away from Home
Examines spending on food away from home, such as meals or snacks from restaurants, vending machines, employer cafeterias, or other venues.
