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               http://www.bls.gov/lau/

                                           For release:  10:00 A.M. EST
Media contact:                691-5902     Friday, February 22, 2002


           STATE AND REGIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT, 2001 ANNUAL AVERAGES
   
   
   Annual average unemployment rates rose in more than half the states in
2001 for the first time since 1992, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
U.S. Department of Labor reported today.  The four census regions and nine
geographic divisions all recorded rate increases.  Employment-population
ratios declined in 38 states and the District of Columbia.  At the national
level, the annual average jobless rate rose from 4.0 percent in 2000 to 4.8
percent in 2001, and the employment-population ratio decreased by 0.7
percentage point to 63.8 percent.
   
State Unemployment
   
   As the nation moved into a recession, most states experienced rising
unemployment rates.  Compared with 2000, jobless rates in 2001 were higher
in 42 states and the District of Columbia, lower in 7 states, and unchanged
in 1 state.  Eighteen states reported rate increases of 1.0 percentage
point or more.  Of these 18 states, 6 were located in the Midwest, 5 each
were in the South and West, and 2 were in the Northeast.  North Carolina
had the largest increase (+1.9 percentage points), followed by Michigan
(+1.7 points) and South Carolina (+1.5 points).  Fourteen additional states
and the District of Columbia recorded rate increases of at least one-half
percentage point from 2000.  In sharp contrast, only two states experienced
declines of 0.5 percentage point or more in their annual average unemployment 
rates--West Virginia's rate was down by 0.6 point, and Delaware's rate 
declined by 0.5 point.  Despite the recession, the 2001 unemployment rates in 
three states were the lowest annual rates in their series:  Montana, 4.6 per-
cent; New Mexico, 4.8 percent; and West Virginia, 4.9 percent.  (All annual 
state series date back to at least 1976.)  (See table 1.)
   
   In 2001, the states with the highest jobless rates were located in the
Pacific division.  Washington registered the highest rate, 6.4 percent,
followed closely by Alaska and Oregon, 6.3 percent each.  (The District of
Columbia's rate was 6.5 percent.)  Louisiana, at 6.0 percent, was the only
other state to record a rate over 5.5 percent for 2001.  North Dakota posted 
the lowest annual average unemployment rate, 2.8 percent, followed by Ne-
braska, 3.1 percent.  Overall, 30 states had unemployment rates below the 
national average, while 18 states and the District of Columbia reported higher 
rates.  All seven states in the West North Central division and all six in New 
England had rates below the U.S. average.  Four of the five Pacific states and 
three of the four states in both the East South Central and West South Central 
divisions recorded rates above the national average.

Regional Unemployment

   For the 10th consecutive year, the West registered the highest regional
unemployment rate, 5.2 percent.  The Northeast reported the lowest rate for

                                  - 2 -

the first time in 11 years, 4.4 percent, a position held by the Midwest
since 1991.  The range between the high and low regional unemployment rates
narrowed slightly.  The last time the difference between the highest and
lowest regional rates was this small, 0.8 percentage point, was in 1991.
The Midwest and South had the largest rate increases from 2000 (+0.9 per-
centage point each), while the Northeast and West posted smaller increases 
(+0.5 and +0.6 point, respectively).

   Among the nation's nine geographic divisions, the Pacific division, at
5.5 percent, registered the highest jobless rate for the 10th consecutive
year.  The East South Central division had the only other rate over 
5.0 percent--5.1 percent.  For the second year in a row, New England 
recorded the lowest unemployment rate, 3.7 percent, followed by the West 
North Central division, 3.9 percent.  The East North Central and South 
Atlantic divisions posted the largest over-the-year rate increases 
(+1.0 percentage point each), followed by New England (+0.9 point).  The 
Middle Atlantic division had the smallest jobless rate increase from 2000 
(+0.4 point).

Employment-Population Ratios

   In 2001, 38 states and the District of Columbia reported declines in
their employment-population ratios--the proportion of the civilian
noninstitutional population 16 years and over with a job--while 12 states
had increases.  The largest drops occurred in South Carolina (-3.0 per-
centage points) and Washington (-2.6 points).  Six additional states
recorded declines of 2.0 percentage points or more from 2000, and 10 others
registered declines of at least 1.0 point.  The largest increases were in
Delaware and Idaho (+1.1 percentage points each) and West Virginia 
(+1.0 point).  Four more states had increases ranging from +0.5 point to 
+0.7 point.  (See table 2.)
   
   West Virginia again posted the lowest employment-population ratio, 54.9
percent, despite an increase of 1.0 percentage point from 2000.  Three
additional Southern states had the next lowest ratios--Arkansas, Louisiana,
and Mississippi--all below 59.0 percent.  Minnesota again reported the
highest proportion of employed persons, 73.3 percent, up by 0.7 point from
its 2000 ratio.  Four other Midwestern states--Iowa, Nebraska, South
Dakota, and Wisconsin--registered the next highest employment-population
ratios.  Of these, only Iowa had a ratio of less than 70.0 percent.
Thirty states recorded employment-population ratios higher than the U.S.
figure of 63.8 percent, while 19 states and the District of Columbia had
lower ratios.

   All four regions posted declines in their annual average employment-
population ratios from 2000, ranging from -0.6 percentage point in 
the Northeast to -0.9 point in the South.  Regional ratios again were 
higher than the U.S. average in the Midwest (66.7 percent) and the West 
(64.0 percent) and lower in the South (62.5 percent) and Northeast 
(62.2 percent).  Of the nine geographic divisions, the East South Central
reported the largest decrease in its annual average employment-population
ratio relative to 2000 (-1.1 percentage points).  The East North Central
division and New England recorded the next largest decreases (-0.9 point
each).  The relatively agrarian West North Central division registered the
smallest decline (-0.3 point) in 2001.  All states in the East North
Central and West North Central divisions had ratios above that of the U.S.,
while all those in the Middle Atlantic and East South Central divisions had
ratios below it.

                                  - 3 -

Note
   
   All estimates presented in this release, except those for Puerto Rico,
were derived from the Current Population Survey, a sample survey conducted
monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau.  A
description of the survey and information about the reliability of the
state estimates appear in Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 
1999, Bulletin 2537.  Annual averages are calculated using data from the 
expanded 60,000-household sample for all the months of 2001.  For more infor-
mation on the sample expansion, see "Expansion of the Current Population 
Survey Sample Effective July 2001" in the August 2001 issue of Employment and 
Earnings.
   
   The length of the annual series varies by state and ranges from 26 to 32
years.  The region and division annual series begin in 1976.

   Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone number:  1-800-877-8339.
Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years of age and over by region, division, and state, 
2000-01 annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                   
                               Population      Civilian labor      Employed          Unemployed       Unemployment                 
                                                   force                                                  rate       Error range of
      Region, division,                                                                                              rate, 2001(1)
          and state                                                                                                                
                             2000     2001     2000     2001     2000     2001      2000     2001     2000     2001                 
                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                   
       United States(2)...  209,699  211,864  140,863  141,815  135,208  135,073    5,655    6,742     4.0      4.8   4.7   -   4.9
                                                                                                                                   
Northeast.................   40,247   40,404   26,295   26,296   25,281   25,140    1,014    1,156     3.9      4.4   4.3   -   4.5
   New England............   10,502   10,571    7,194    7,212    6,995    6,948      199      264     2.8      3.7   3.5   -   3.9
      Connecticut.........    2,537    2,545    1,746    1,718    1,707    1,661       39       56     2.3      3.3   2.9   -   3.7
      Maine...............      998    1,011      689      684      665      657       24       27     3.5      4.0   3.5   -   4.5
      Massachusetts.......    4,804    4,828    3,237    3,284    3,151    3,163       86      121     2.6      3.7   3.3   -   4.1
      New Hampshire.......      939      954      686      689      666      664       19       24     2.8      3.5   3.1   -   3.9
      Rhode Island........      753      757      505      504      484      480       21       24     4.1      4.7   4.2   -   5.2
      Vermont.............      471      476      332      335      322      323       10       12     2.9      3.6   3.2   -   4.0
                                                                                                                                   
   Middle Atlantic........   29,745   29,833   19,101   19,084   18,286   18,192      815      892     4.3      4.7   4.5   -   4.9
      New Jersey..........    6,292    6,322    4,188    4,179    4,030    4,004      157      176     3.8      4.2   3.8   -   4.6
      New York............   14,163   14,209    8,941    8,832    8,533    8,402      408      429     4.6      4.9   4.6   -   5.2
      Pennsylvania........    9,290    9,301    5,972    6,073    5,722    5,786      250      287     4.2      4.7   4.4   -   5.0
                                                                                                                                   
Midwest...................   48,222   48,517   33,729   33,904   32,493   32,356    1,236    1,548     3.7      4.6   4.5   -   4.7
   East North Central.....   33,931   34,111   23,422   23,478   22,517   22,338      905    1,140     3.9      4.9   4.7   -   5.1
      Illinois............    9,199    9,244    6,419    6,349    6,140    6,006      279      343     4.4      5.4   5.0   -   5.8
      Indiana.............    4,529    4,557    3,084    3,106    2,984    2,970      100      136     3.2      4.4   3.9   -   4.9
      Michigan............    7,548    7,594    5,201    5,175    5,016    4,901      185      274     3.6      5.3   4.9   -   5.7
      Ohio................    8,624    8,646    5,783    5,857    5,546    5,606      237      251     4.1      4.3   4.0   -   4.6
      Wisconsin...........    4,031    4,070    2,935    2,991    2,831    2,854      104      136     3.5      4.6   4.1   -   5.1
                                                                                                                                   
   West North Central.....   14,291   14,406   10,307   10,426    9,976   10,018      331      408     3.2      3.9   3.7   -   4.1
      Iowa................    2,193    2,199    1,563    1,588    1,522    1,535       41       53     2.6      3.3   2.9   -   3.7
      Kansas..............    2,001    2,013    1,411    1,381    1,359    1,322       52       59     3.7      4.3   3.8   -   4.8
      Minnesota...........    3,648    3,697    2,739    2,814    2,649    2,710       90      104     3.3      3.7   3.3   -   4.1
      Missouri............    4,166    4,200    2,930    2,970    2,828    2,830      101      140     3.5      4.7   4.2   -   5.2
      Nebraska............    1,254    1,262      924      928      897      899       28       29     3.0      3.1   2.7   -   3.5
      North Dakota........      477      477      339      339      329      329       10       10     3.0      2.8   2.4   -   3.2
      South Dakota........      552      557      401      405      392      392        9       13     2.3      3.3   2.9   -   3.7
                                                                                                                                   
South.....................   74,337   75,277   49,035   49,426   47,104   47,076    1,931    2,350     3.9      4.8   4.7   -   4.9
   South Atlantic.........   38,528   39,040   25,534   25,792   24,624   24,618      910    1,174     3.6      4.6   4.4   -   4.8
      Delaware............      588      595      409      419      393      404       16       15     4.0      3.5   3.0   -   4.0
      District of Columbia      413      412      279      278      263      260       16       18     5.8      6.5   5.8   -   7.2
      Florida.............   11,960   12,144    7,490    7,674    7,221    7,309      269      365     3.6      4.8   4.5   -   5.1
      Georgia.............    5,967    6,077    4,173    4,132    4,019    3,966      154      165     3.7      4.0   3.5   -   4.5
      Maryland............    4,015    4,057    2,805    2,837    2,697    2,722      108      116     3.9      4.1   3.6   -   4.6
      North Carolina......    5,809    5,863    3,958    3,995    3,814    3,773      144      221     3.6      5.5   5.0   -   6.0
      South Carolina......    3,032    3,072    1,985    1,949    1,909    1,843       77      106     3.9      5.4   4.8   -   6.0
      Virginia............    5,299    5,374    3,610    3,675    3,530    3,548       80      127     2.2      3.5   3.1   -   3.9
      West Virginia.......    1,445    1,444      825      833      779      792       46       41     5.5      4.9   4.4   -   5.4
                                                                                                                                   
   East South Central.....   12,853   12,949    8,261    8,229    7,895    7,809      366      420     4.4      5.1   4.8   -   5.4
      Alabama.............    3,401    3,418    2,154    2,148    2,055    2,033       99      114     4.6      5.3   4.7   -   5.9
      Kentucky............    3,082    3,110    1,982    1,968    1,900    1,860       82      108     4.1      5.5   4.9   -   6.1
      Mississippi.........    2,086    2,100    1,326    1,296    1,251    1,225       75       72     5.7      5.5   4.8   -   6.2
      Tennessee...........    4,284    4,320    2,798    2,818    2,688    2,692      110      126     3.9      4.5   3.9   -   5.1
                                                                                                                                   
   West South Central.....   22,956   23,288   15,240   15,405   14,585   14,649      655      756     4.3      4.9   4.7   -   5.1
      Arkansas............    1,977    1,999    1,238    1,227    1,183    1,164       55       63     4.4      5.1   4.5   -   5.7
      Louisiana...........    3,289    3,299    2,030    2,050    1,917    1,928      112      122     5.5      6.0   5.3   -   6.7
      Oklahoma............    2,558    2,576    1,648    1,665    1,598    1,602       50       64     3.0      3.8   3.3   -   4.3
      Texas...............   15,132   15,414   10,325   10,463    9,887    9,955      437      507     4.2      4.9   4.6   -   5.2
                                                                                                                                   
West......................   46,891   47,666   31,806   32,189   30,333   30,501    1,473    1,688     4.6      5.2   5.0   -   5.4
   Mountain...............   13,033   13,271    8,949    9,110    8,614    8,702      336      407     3.8      4.5   4.3   -   4.7
      Arizona.............    3,626    3,690    2,347    2,420    2,256    2,307       91      113     3.9      4.7   4.1   -   5.3
      Colorado............    3,141    3,203    2,276    2,295    2,213    2,210       63       85     2.7      3.7   3.3   -   4.1
      Idaho...............      951      969      658      682      626      648       32       34     4.9      5.0   4.4   -   5.6
      Montana.............      691      698      479      465      456      444       24       21     4.9      4.6   4.0   -   5.2
      Nevada..............    1,408    1,453      986    1,023      946      969       40       55     4.1      5.3   4.8   -   5.8
      New Mexico..........    1,318    1,331      833      838      792      798       40       40     4.9      4.8   4.2   -   5.4
      Utah................    1,527    1,552    1,104    1,115    1,068    1,067       36       49     3.2      4.4   3.9   -   4.9
      Wyoming.............      371      375      267      271      257      261       10       11     3.9      3.9   3.4   -   4.4
                                                                                                                                   
   Pacific................   33,858   34,395   22,856   23,079   21,719   21,798    1,137    1,281     5.0      5.5   5.3   -   5.7
      Alaska..............      438      442      322      322      301      302       21       20     6.6      6.3   5.7   -   6.9
      California..........   25,489   25,939   17,091   17,362   16,246   16,435      845      927     4.9      5.3   5.0   -   5.6
      Hawaii..............      889      893      595      606      570      577       26       28     4.3      4.6   4.1   -   5.1
      Oregon..............    2,608    2,633    1,803    1,794    1,715    1,680       87      114     4.9      6.3   5.7   -   6.9
      Washington..........    4,434    4,487    3,045    2,996    2,888    2,804      158      192     5.2      6.4   5.7   -   7.1
                                                                                                                                   
Puerto Rico(3)............    2,834    2,873    1,306    1,297    1,174    1,150      132      147    10.1     11.4        (4)     

       1 Error ranges are shown at the 90-percent confidence level.
       2 Because of separate processing and weighting procedures, totals for the United States differ from the results obtained by
    aggregating data for regions, divisions, or states.
       3 The source of these data is the Puerto Rico Department of Labor and Human Resources.
       4 Not available.
    NOTE:  Region and division data are derived from summing the component states.  Annual averages for 2001 from the Current 
    Population Survey are calculated using data from the expanded 60,000-household sample for all the months of 2001.  The 
    published monthly estimates for January through June of 2001, however, are based on the old 50,000-household sample survey 
    and were not revised when the expanded sample was introduced with the release of July 2001 data. For more information on the 
    sample expansion, see "Expansion of the Current Population Survey Sample Effective July 2001" in the August 2001 issue of 
    Employment and Earnings.
Table 2. Employment-population ratio of persons 16 years of age and over by 
region, division, and state, 2000-01 annual averages

(Percent)
			     Employment-population 
				   ratio(1)           Over-the-year
Region, division, and state                              change
						      
			       2000          2001        

  United States ..........     64.5          63.8         -0.7

Northeast ................     62.8          62.2          -.6
 New England .............     66.6          65.7          -.9
  Connecticut ............     67.3          65.3         -2.0
  Maine ..................     66.6          65.0         -1.6
  Massachusetts ..........     65.6          65.5          -.1
  New Hampshire ..........     71.0          69.7         -1.3
  Rhode Island ...........     64.3          63.4          -.9
  Vermont ................     68.3          67.7          -.6

 Middle Atlantic .........     61.5          61.0          -.5
  New Jersey .............     64.1          63.3          -.8
  New York ...............     60.3          59.1         -1.2
  Pennsylvania ...........     61.6          62.2           .6

Midwest ..................     67.4          66.7          -.7
 East North Central ......     66.4          65.5          -.9
  Illinois ...............     66.7          65.0         -1.7
  Indiana ................     65.9          65.2          -.7
  Michigan ...............     66.5          64.5         -2.0
  Ohio ...................     64.3          64.8           .5
  Wisconsin ..............     70.2          70.1          -.1

 West North Central ......     69.8          69.5          -.3
  Iowa ...................     69.4          69.8           .4
  Kansas .................     67.9          65.7         -2.2
  Minnesota ..............     72.6          73.3           .7
  Missouri ...............     67.9          67.4          -.5
  Nebraska ...............     71.5          71.3          -.2
  North Dakota ...........     68.9          69.0           .1
  South Dakota ...........     71.0          70.2          -.8

South ....................     63.4          62.5          -.9
 South Atlantic ..........     63.9          63.1          -.8
  Delaware ...............     66.8          67.9          1.1
  District Of Columbia ...     63.6          63.1          -.5
  Florida ................     60.4          60.2          -.2
  Georgia ................     67.4          65.3         -2.1
  Maryland ...............     67.2          67.1          -.1
  North Carolina .........     65.7          64.4         -1.3
  South Carolina .........     63.0          60.0         -3.0
  Virginia ...............     66.6          66.0          -.6
  West Virginia ..........     53.9          54.9          1.0

 East South Central ......     61.4          60.3         -1.1
  Alabama ................     60.4          59.5          -.9
  Kentucky ...............     61.7          59.8         -1.9
  Mississippi ............     60.0          58.3         -1.7
  Tennessee ..............     62.7          62.3          -.4

 West South Central ......     63.5          62.9          -.6
  Arkansas ...............     59.8          58.2         -1.6
  Louisiana ..............     58.3          58.4           .1
  Oklahoma ...............     62.5          62.2          -.3
  Texas ..................     65.3          64.6          -.7

West .....................     64.7          64.0          -.7
 Mountain ................     66.1          65.6          -.5
  Arizona ................     62.2          62.5           .3
  Colorado ...............     70.5          69.0         -1.5
  Idaho ..................     65.8          66.9          1.1
  Montana ................     65.9          63.6         -2.3
  Nevada .................     67.2          66.7          -.5
  New Mexico .............     60.1          60.0          -.1
  Utah ...................     70.0          68.7         -1.3
  Wyoming ................     69.2          69.5           .3

 Pacific .................     64.1          63.4          -.7
  Alaska .................     68.6          68.2          -.4
  California .............     63.7          63.4          -.3
  Hawaii .................     64.1          64.7           .6
  Oregon .................     65.8          63.8         -2.0
  Washington .............     65.1          62.5         -2.6

Puerto Rico (2)...........     41.4          40.0         -1.4


   1 Employment as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional population 
16 years of age and over.
   2 The source of these data is the Puerto Rico Department of Labor and 
Human Resources.