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Employment Research

Regional and State Unemployment in 2017

On February 27, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its annual summary of regional and state unemployment in 2017. Findings included:

  • Annual average unemployment rates decreased in 32 states and were little changed or unchanged in 18 states.
  • The Midwest had a jobless rate of 4.1 percent, the lowest of the four U.S. Census regions.
  • The largest unemployment rate declines occurred in Alabama (-1.5 percentage points), Wyoming (-1.1 points), and Tennessee (-1.0 point). Missouri's unemployment rate declined by 0.8 points.

The full report is available on the BLS website.