Superlatives No State Wants to Win

Do any recruiters know what people are doing in North Dakota  to ensure that the state continuously boasts the lowest unemployment?  Maybe it’s some secret tied to the vibrating strips that meticulously line the state’s highways . . .   More likely, it has something to do with its population size and number of job opportunities.

Although Nevada is thought of as home to several booming cities, the state as a whole is shouldering the highest unemployment rate, 14.2 percent in January.  How would these figures change if immigrant and migrant labor were factored into the unemployment figures?

While Coloradans are better off than some states, the Rocky Mountain State has its highest, recorded unemployment, 9.1 percent.

California suffered behind Nevada with 12.4 percent of its citizens reported as unemployed.  Florida reported its unemployment rate at 11.9 percent.

North Dakota reported the lowest jobless rate, 3.8 percent, followed by Nebraska and South Dakota, 4.2 and 4.7 percent, respectively.

In total, 23 States posted jobless rates significantly lower than the U.S. figure of 9.0 percent, 10 States recorded measurably higher rates, and 17 States and the District of Columbia had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the Nation.

Sixteen States reported statistically significant over-the-year jobless rate decreases in January, the largest of which were in Michigan (?3.0 percentage points) and Illinois (?2.2 points). The remaining 34 States and the District of Columbia registered unemployment rates that were not appreciably different from those of a year earlier.