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State unemployment rates, 2011

March 13, 2012

In 2011, 28 states had annual average unemployment rates that were significantly lower than the U.S. rate of 8.9 percent, while 10 states and the District of Columbia recorded rates significantly above it. The remaining 12 states had unemployment rates that were not statistically different from the U.S. rate.

Unemployment rates by state, 2011 annual averages
Unemployment rates by state, 2011 annual averages (U.S. rate = 8.9 percent)
StateUnemployment rateDifference from U.S. rate

Alabama

9.0Not significantly different

Alaska

7.6Significantly below

Arizona

9.5Not significantly different

Arkansas

8.0Significantly below

California

11.7Significantly above

Colorado

8.3Significantly below

Connecticut

8.8Not significantly different

Delaware

7.3Significantly below

District of Columbia

10.2Significantly above

Florida

10.5Significantly above

Georgia

9.8Significantly above

Hawaii

6.7Significantly below

Idaho

8.7Not significantly different

Illinois

9.8Significantly above

Indiana

9.0Not significantly different

Iowa

5.9Significantly below

Kansas

6.7Significantly below

Kentucky

9.5Not significantly different

Louisiana

7.3Significantly below

Maine

7.5Significantly below

Maryland

7.0Significantly below

Massachusetts

7.4Significantly below

Michigan

10.3Significantly above

Minnesota

6.4Significantly below

Mississippi

10.7Significantly above

Missouri

8.6Not significantly different

Montana

6.8Significantly below

Nebraska

4.4Significantly below

Nevada

13.5Significantly above

New Hampshire

5.4Significantly below

New Jersey

9.3Not significantly different

New Mexico

7.4Significantly below

New York

8.2Significantly below

North Carolina

10.5Significantly above

North Dakota

3.5Significantly below

Ohio

8.6Not significantly different

Oklahoma

6.2Significantly below

Oregon

9.5Not significantly different

Pennsylvania

7.9Significantly below

Rhode Island

11.3Significantly above

South Carolina

10.3Significantly above

South Dakota

4.7Significantly below

Tennessee

9.2Not significantly different

Texas

7.9Significantly below

Utah

6.7Significantly below

Vermont

5.6Significantly below

Virginia

6.2Significantly below

Washington

9.2Not significantly different

West Virginia

8.0Significantly below

Wisconsin

7.5Significantly below

Wyoming

6.0Significantly below

These data are featured in the TED article, State unemployment rates, 2011.

In 2011, 30 states posted statistically significant unemployment rate decreases, the largest of which was in Michigan (−2.4 percentage points). Four additional states experienced decreases greater than 1.0 percentage point: Ohio (−1.4 points), Utah (−1.3 points), Oregon (−1.2 points), and Indiana (−1.1 points). The remaining 20 states and the District of Columbia reported annual average unemployment rates for 2011 that were not appreciably different from those of the previous year, even though some had changes that were at least as large numerically as the significant changes.

Eight states and the District of Columbia reported unemployment rates of 10.0 percent or more in 2011. Nevada again posted the highest unemployment rate, 13.5 percent, followed by California, 11.7 percent. North Dakota registered the lowest jobless rate among states for the third year in a row, 3.5 percent, followed by Nebraska, 4.4 percent.

These unemployment data are from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program. For more information, see "Regional and State Unemployment — 2011 Annual Averages" (HTML) (PDF), news release USDL-12-0371.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, State unemployment rates, 2011 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2012/ted_20120313.htm (visited March 29, 2024).

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