Jobs boom at the state level
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
The job market is humming nationally, but zoom in and you get another extraordinary snapshot: Many states across the country are experiencing all-time lows in unemployment.
Why it matters: Labor market boom times are supporting local economies, with parts of the country experiencing tighter conditions than some residents have seen in their lifetimes.
By the numbers: From Pennsylvania to Washington to Alabama, 17 states saw jobless rates hit new record lows or hold at a previously notched low in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- That group includes New Hampshire and South Dakota. Both are tied for lowest unemployment rates in the nation at 1.8% in June, both ticking down from 1.9%. (Nationally, the unemployment rate was 3.6%).
- Fourteen other states, including Florida (2.6%), Kentucky (3.8%) and Montana (2.4%), have unemployment rates hovering 0.1 or 0.2 percentage points above all-time low levels.
The intrigue: The strong labor market conditions may be politically awkward for red-state politicians who are touting big job gains and have also criticized the state of the economy under the Biden administration.
- That dynamic was on display after the state-level employment data was released Friday. Republican governors of South Dakota and Mississippi praised record-low unemployment rates — a fact the White House gleefully pointed out to reporters.
- Axios' Hans Nichols found that a number of these states are also benefiting from the manufacturing jobs boom, something to which Biden-era legislation has contributed.
What to watch: There are signs of deteriorating labor market conditions in a few states — a reality not reflected at the national level.
- That includes the nation's most populous state, California. The unemployment rate has jumped 0.8 percentage points to 4.6% since hitting a record low in August 2022.
- Nevada had the highest jobless rate among U.S. states in June, at 5.4%.
