Each month, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shares the employment report on a national level for the previous month. The BLS also releases unemployment data by state.
The figures from June show that unemployment ticked up slightly, while job growth slowed to a still-robust rate. This points to a greater possibility that inflation can go down without bringing the country to a recession.
Non-farm payrolls increased by 206,000 jobs, while numbers for the month of May had to be adjusted down to indicate 218,000 jobs added instead of the previously reported 272,000. Average hourly wages went up by 0.3% in June compared to the previous month.
Based on the information shared by the agency, here are the states where unemployment rates went down the most in June.
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States that have decreased unemployment the most
According to the most recent report, the national unemployment rate changed little in June and stood at 4.1 percent, but was 0.5 percentage points higher than in June 2023.
Unemployment rates were higher in June in eight states, lower in one state and stable in 41 states and the District of Columbia.
Looking at annual data, 31 states and DC had increases in the unemployment rate from the previous year, two states had decreases, while 17 states had little change.
From January to June, the states that have seen decreases in their unemployment rates have been the following:
- Alaska: from 4.6% to 4.5%
- Iowa: from 3% to 2.8%
- Nevada: from 5.3% to 5.2%
- New Hampshire: from 2.6% to 2.5%
- New Jersey: 4.8% to 4.6%
- New York: from 4.5% to 4.2%
- South Dakota: from 2.1% to 2%
- Vermont: 2.3% to 2.1%
- Virginia: from 3% to 2.7%
- Connecticut: 4.4% to 3.9%
- Wisconsin: 3.2% to 2.9%
- Arizona: 4.2% to 3.3%
- Arkansas: 3.7 to 3.3%
- Louisiana: 4.1% to 4%
- Maine: 3.4% to 2.8%
- Mississippi: 3.2% to 2.8%
- Montana: 3.3% to 3.1%
- New Mexico: 4% to 3.9%
- Oklahoma: 3.5% to 3.4%
- West Virginia: 4.3% to 4.1%
