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California and Nevada have highest unemployment rates in September 2021, at 7.5 percent
October 27, 2021
California and Nevada had the highest unemployment rates in September 2021, at 7.5 percent each. Nebraska and Utah had the lowest jobless rates, 2.0 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively. The rates in Georgia (3.2 percent) and Nebraska (2.0 percent) set new lows. (All state data begin in 1976.) In total, 19 states had unemployment rates lower than the U.S. figure of 4.8 percent, 16 states and the District of Columbia had higher rates, and 15 states had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation.
State unemployment rates, September 2021, seasonally adjusted
State
September 2021 unemployment rate
September 2020 unemployment rate
12-month change
Alabama
3.1%
6.7%
-3.6 percentage point(s)
Alaska
6.3
7.0
-0.7
Arizona
5.7
6.9
-1.2
Arkansas
4.0
5.9
-1.9
California
7.5
10.6
-3.1
Colorado
5.6
7.0
-1.4
Connecticut
6.8
8.3
-1.5
Delaware
5.3
7.6
-2.3
District of Columbia
6.5
8.7
-2.2
Florida
4.9
7.2
-2.3
Georgia
3.2
6.5
-3.3
Hawaii
6.6
14.8
-8.2
Idaho
2.9
6.0
-3.1
Illinois
6.8
10.4
-3.6
Indiana
4.0
6.3
-2.3
Iowa
4.0
4.7
-0.7
Kansas
3.9
6.1
-2.2
Kentucky
4.3
5.5
-1.2
Louisiana
5.8
8.0
-2.2
Maine
4.8
4.9
-0.1
Maryland
5.9
7.0
-1.1
Massachusetts
5.2
8.9
-3.7
Michigan
4.6
8.2
-3.6
Minnesota
3.7
5.8
-2.1
Mississippi
5.8
7.2
-1.4
Missouri
3.8
5.4
-1.6
Montana
3.3
5.2
-1.9
Nebraska
2.0
3.8
-1.8
Nevada
7.5
13.0
-5.5
New Hampshire
2.9
5.5
-2.6
New Jersey
7.1
7.8
-0.7
New Mexico
6.9
8.6
-1.7
New York
7.1
10.0
-2.9
North Carolina
4.2
7.3
-3.1
North Dakota
3.5
4.7
-1.2
Ohio
5.4
7.4
-2.0
Oklahoma
3.0
5.7
-2.7
Oregon
4.7
7.5
-2.8
Pennsylvania
6.2
7.1
-0.9
Rhode Island
5.2
10.9
-5.7
South Carolina
4.1
5.4
-1.3
South Dakota
2.9
4.0
-1.1
Tennessee
4.4
7.9
-3.5
Texas
5.6
7.9
-2.3
Utah
2.4
4.2
-1.8
Vermont
2.9
4.6
-1.7
Virginia
3.8
6.6
-2.8
Washington
4.9
8.0
-3.1
West Virginia
4.6
7.9
-3.3
Wisconsin
3.9
5.2
-1.3
Wyoming
4.5
5.7
-1.2
Forty-eight states and the District of Columbia had jobless rate decreases from a year earlier and 2 states were little changed.
The largest unemployment rate decrease from September 2020 occurred in Hawaii (−8.2 percentage points). The next largest over-the-year jobless rate decreases were in Rhode Island (−5.7 points) and Nevada (5.5 points), with another 11 states experiencing declines of 3.0 points or more.
United States Department of Labor
