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USDL 04-289

For release: 10:00 A.M. EST

Friday, February 27, 2004

STATE AND REGIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT, 2003 ANNUAL AVERAGES

Annual average unemployment rates edged up in three regions and rose in about two-thirds of the states

in 2003. Meanwhile, employment-population ratios again declined in all four regions and in the majority of

states, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. At the national level,

the jobless rate edged up by 0.2 percentage point to 6.0 percent, while the employment-population ratio declined by 0.4 percentage point to 62.3 percent.

Regional Unemployment

Among the four regions, the Midwest experienced the largest jobless rate increase from 2002 (+0.4 percentage point), the Northeast and South both recorded smaller increases (+0.2 point each), and the West

reported no rate change from the year before. For the 12th consecutive year, the West registered the highest

regional unemployment rate, 6.5 percent. The Northeast and South each reported the lowest jobless rate,

5.8 percent, little different from the 5.9 percent rate in the Midwest. The range between the highest and

lowest regional rates narrowed from 1.0 percentage point in 2002 to 0.7 point last year, despite generally

higher rates.

In 2003, the New England and West South Central divisions posted the largest annual unemployment

rate increases (+0.6 percentage point each), followed by the East North Central and West North Central

divisions (+0.4 point each) and the East South Central (+0.3 point). For the 12th year in a row, the Pacific

division reported the highest unemployment rate, 6.9 percent. The next highest rate was recorded in the

West South Central division, 6.6 percent. The West North Central division, at 5.0 percent, posted the

lowest rate for the second consecutive year, followed by the South Atlantic and New England divisions, at

5.2 and 5.4 percent, respectively.

State Unemployment

Annual average unemployment rates rose in 34 states and the District of Columbia from 2002 to 2003,

declined in 11 states, and were unchanged in 5 states. The largest rate increases were in Connecticut and

Oklahoma (+1.2 percentage points each), Michigan (+1.1 points), and New Mexico (+1.0 point). Thirteen

additional states and the District of Columbia registered over-the-year rate increases of at least one-half

percentage point. All four states in the West South Central division and four of the six states in New

England recorded increases of 0.5 percentage point or greater. Arizona reported the largest annual

unemployment rate decline from 2002 (-0.6 percentage point), followed closely by Mississippi and Utah

(-0.5 point each). The Mountain division had the largest number of states reporting annual average
2

unemployment rate decreases in 2003, as four of its eight states had declines, ranging from 0.3 to 0.6 percentage point. (See table 1 and chart 1.)

States in the Pacific division continued to record the highest jobless rates in the nation in 2003: Oregon,

8.2 percent, Alaska, 8.0 percent, and Washington, 7.5 percent. The lowest jobless rates for the year were

reported in three West North Central states—South Dakota, 3.6 percent, and Nebraska and North Dakota,

4.0 percent each. Overall, 32 states had unemployment rates below the national average of 6.0 percent, 17

states and the District of Columbia had rates above it, and one state had a rate equal to it. All seven states

in the West North Central division and all six in New England posted rates below that of the Nation. In

contrast, four of the five Pacific states and three of the four West South Central states recorded rates above

the U.S. figure. (See chart 2.)

Regional Employment-Population Ratios

All four regions recorded declines in their annual employment-population ratios—the proportion of the

civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and over with a job. The Northeast posted the largest over-theyear decline (-0.8 percentage point), followed by the West (-0.6 point). The Midwest (64.6 percent) and

West (62.4 percent) continued to report employment-population ratios above the U.S. average of 62.3

percent in 2003, while the Northeast (61.1 percent) and South (61.3 percent) had ratios below it.

Of the nine geographic divisions, the Middle Atlantic, New England, and Pacific registered the largest

decreases in their employment-population ratios from 2002 (-0.8 percentage point each). The next largest

decrease was in the West North Central division (-0.5 percentage point). The other five divisions had

smaller annual average declines. The West North Central division, which in recent years has had high levels

of agricultural employment and part-time workers, again recorded the highest employment-population ratio

(68.2 percent). The East South Central division continued to have the lowest proportion of employed

persons (59.1 percent).

State Employment-Population Ratios

In 2003, 29 states posted declines in their proportion of employed persons from 2002, 18 states

reported increases, and 3 states and the District of Columbia had no change. The largest employmentpopulation ratio drop from 2002 was recorded in Iowa (-2.9 percentage points). Arkansas reported the

second largest decrease (-1.7 points). Ten additional states had declines of at least 1.0 percentage point,

and 10 others had decreases of one-half point or more. Four states reported increases in employmentpopulation ratios of more than a full percentage point for the year: Rhode Island (+1.4 points), Alabama and

Wyoming (+1.2 points each), and Georgia (+1.1 points). Another seven states posted increases of at least

0.5 percentage point from 2002. (See table 2 and chart 3.)

West Virginia continued to have the lowest employment-population ratio among all states in 2003, 51.3

percent, a decline of 1.3 percentage points from the previous year. Louisiana had the next lowest ratio, 56.9

percent. Overall, 8 of the 10 states with employment-population ratios below 60 percent were located in the

South. Minnesota continued to report the highest proportion of employed persons, 71.3 percent, despite a

decline of 1.1 percentage points from 2002. Two other Midwestern states—Nebraska and South Dakota—

registered the next highest ratios, 71.1 percent each, and were the only other states with ratios over 70.0

percent. Thirty states recorded employment-population ratios higher than the U.S. figure of 62.3 percent,

while 20 states and the District of Columbia posted lower ratios. All states in the New England and West

North Central divisions again had employment-population ratios above that of the Nation, while all states in

the Middle Atlantic and East South Central divisions continued to have 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, 2002, Bulletin 2564, available

on the Internet at http://stats.bls.gov/opub/gp/laugp.htm. Annual averages for regions, divisions, states, and

the District of Columbia, shown in tables 1 and 2, reflect updated Census 2000-based population controls.

Data for Puerto Rico are not included in the U.S. totals.

The length of the annual series varies by state and ranges from 28 to 34 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, 

2002-03 annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Region, division, and state

Population Civilian labor force Employed Unemployed Unemployment

rate Error range of

rate, 2003 1

2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003

 United States 2 ............... 217,570 221,168 144,863 146,510 136,485 137,736 8,378 8,774 5.8 6.0 5.9 - 6.1

Northeast ............................ 41,960 42,264 27,531 27,415 25,984 25,815 1,547 1,599 5.6 5.8 5.6 - 6.0

 New England ................... 11,007 11,092 7,548 7,554 7,182 7,145 366 409 4.8 5.4 5.1 - 5.7

 Connecticut ................... 2,651 2,680 1,792 1,803 1,714 1,704 78 99 4.3 5.5 5.0 - 6.0

 Maine ............................ 1,025 1,039 680 693 650 658 30 35 4.4 5.1 4.6 - 5.6

 Massachusetts .............. 5,018 5,028 3,467 3,416 3,283 3,217 184 198 5.3 5.8 5.3 - 6.3

 New Hampshire ............ 990 1,005 706 719 673 688 33 31 4.7 4.3 3.9 - 4.7

 Rhode Island ................. 835 844 553 573 525 543 28 30 5.1 5.3 4.8 - 5.8

 Vermont ........................ 489 494 349 351 336 335 13 16 3.7 4.6 4.2 - 5.0

 Middle Atlantic ................. 30,953 31,173 19,984 19,860 18,803 18,671 1,181 1,190 5.9 6.0 5.8 - 6.2

 New Jersey ................... 6,563 6,619 4,353 4,375 4,099 4,118 254 257 5.8 5.9 5.5 - 6.3

 New York ...................... 14,789 14,891 9,345 9,315 8,773 8,726 572 589 6.1 6.3 6.0 - 6.6

 Pennsylvania ................ 9,601 9,663 6,286 6,170 5,930 5,826 356 344 5.7 5.6 5.2 - 6.0

Midwest ............................... 49,563 49,929 34,099 34,291 32,222 32,267 1,878 2,024 5.5 5.9 5.7 - 6.1

 East North Central ........... 34,723 34,963 23,411 23,553 22,025 22,063 1,386 1,491 5.9 6.3 6.1 - 6.5

 Illinois ............................ 9,510 9,583 6,369 6,330 5,955 5,908 414 422 6.5 6.7 6.3 - 7.1

 Indiana .......................... 4,648 4,679 3,170 3,188 3,007 3,024 163 163 5.1 5.1 4.6 - 5.6

 Michigan ....................... 7,650 7,706 5,001 5,042 4,691 4,674 310 368 6.2 7.3 6.8 - 7.8

 Ohio .............................. 8,729 8,771 5,847 5,915 5,515 5,552 332 363 5.7 6.1 5.7 - 6.5

 Wisconsin ..................... 4,186 4,224 3,025 3,078 2,858 2,905 167 174 5.5 5.6 5.0 - 6.2

 West North Central .......... 14,841 14,966 10,689 10,737 10,196 10,204 492 533 4.6 5.0 4.7 - 5.3

 Iowa .............................. 2,271 2,286 1,663 1,612 1,596 1,540 67 72 4.0 4.5 4.0 - 5.0

 Kansas .......................... 2,035 2,049 1,410 1,434 1,338 1,357 72 77 5.1 5.4 4.9 - 5.9

 Minnesota ..................... 3,851 3,896 2,915 2,923 2,787 2,778 128 145 4.4 5.0 4.5 - 5.5

 Missouri ........................ 4,318 4,352 2,982 3,021 2,818 2,850 164 170 5.5 5.6 5.1 - 6.1

 Nebraska ...................... 1,305 1,318 956 976 921 937 34 39 3.6 4.0 3.5 - 4.5

 North Dakota ................. 489 490 344 346 330 333 14 14 4.0 4.0 3.5 - 4.5

 South Dakota ................ 571 576 419 425 406 410 13 15 3.1 3.6 3.2 - 4.0

South .................................. 77,583 78,692 50,551 51,228 47,711 48,277 2,840 2,951 5.6 5.8 5.6 - 6.0

 South Atlantic ................... 40,706 41,345 26,642 26,995 25,218 25,586 1,424 1,409 5.3 5.2 5.0 - 5.4

 Delaware ....................... 617 625 420 417 402 399 18 18 4.2 4.4 3.9 - 4.9

 District of Columbia ....... 458 454 303 302 284 281 19 21 6.4 7.0 6.3 - 7.7

 Florida ........................... 12,943 13,211 8,095 8,164 7,653 7,744 443 420 5.5 5.1 4.8 - 5.4

 Georgia ......................... 6,318 6,431 4,280 4,414 4,060 4,207 220 207 5.1 4.7 4.2 - 5.2

 Maryland ....................... 4,124 4,181 2,897 2,904 2,771 2,773 126 131 4.4 4.5 4.0 - 5.0

 North Carolina ............... 6,254 6,328 4,166 4,230 3,885 3,957 281 273 6.7 6.5 6.0 - 7.0

 South Carolina .............. 3,105 3,142 1,944 2,003 1,828 1,866 116 136 6.0 6.8 6.2 - 7.4

 Virginia .......................... 5,451 5,532 3,733 3,773 3,581 3,620 152 154 4.1 4.1 3.6 - 4.6

 West Virginia ................. 1,435 1,442 804 787 755 739 49 48 6.1 6.1 5.5 - 6.7

 East South Central ........... 13,126 13,235 8,248 8,325 7,778 7,828 470 497 5.7 6.0 5.7 - 6.3

 Alabama ........................ 3,419 3,442 2,095 2,147 1,971 2,023 124 125 5.9 5.8 5.2 - 6.4

 Kentucky ....................... 3,129 3,153 1,932 1,956 1,824 1,836 108 120 5.6 6.2 5.6 - 6.8

 Mississippi .................... 2,126 2,138 1,292 1,312 1,204 1,229 88 83 6.8 6.3 5.6 - 7.0

 Tennessee .................... 4,451 4,501 2,928 2,909 2,779 2,740 150 169 5.1 5.8 5.2 - 6.4

 West South Central .......... 23,752 24,112 15,661 15,908 14,715 14,863 946 1,045 6.0 6.6 6.3 - 6.9

 Arkansas ....................... 2,054 2,071 1,281 1,265 1,212 1,186 70 78 5.4 6.2 5.5 - 6.9

 Louisiana ...................... 3,324 3,348 1,998 2,037 1,876 1,904 123 134 6.1 6.6 5.9 - 7.3

 Oklahoma ..................... 2,622 2,646 1,695 1,696 1,618 1,600 76 96 4.5 5.7 5.0 - 6.4

 Texas ............................ 15,753 16,047 10,686 10,910 10,009 10,173 677 738 6.3 6.8 6.4 - 7.2

West .................................... 48,903 49,792 32,948 33,245 30,813 31,070 2,135 2,176 6.5 6.5 6.3 - 6.7

 Mountain .......................... 14,137 14,433 9,693 9,837 9,135 9,281 558 556 5.8 5.7 5.4 - 6.0

 Arizona .......................... 4,027 4,131 2,667 2,690 2,503 2,539 165 151 6.2 5.6 5.0 - 6.2

 Colorado ....................... 3,393 3,440 2,437 2,478 2,298 2,328 140 150 5.7 6.0 5.5 - 6.5

 Idaho ............................. 991 1,013 686 693 646 655 40 37 5.8 5.4 4.8 - 6.0

 Montana ........................ 705 714 464 475 442 452 21 22 4.6 4.7 4.1 - 5.3

 Nevada ......................... 1,626 1,686 1,129 1,141 1,066 1,082 62 59 5.5 5.2 4.7 - 5.7

 New Mexico .................. 1,378 1,401 875 897 828 840 48 57 5.4 6.4 5.7 - 7.1

 Utah .............................. 1,634 1,660 1,165 1,184 1,094 1,118 71 67 6.1 5.6 5.0 - 6.2

 Wyoming ....................... 383 387 270 278 259 266 11 12 4.2 4.4 3.9 - 4.9

 Pacific .............................. 34,766 35,359 23,256 23,409 21,678 21,789 1,577 1,620 6.8 6.9 6.6 - 7.2

 Alaska ........................... 450 459 324 332 299 305 25 27 7.7 8.0 7.3 - 8.7

 California ....................... 26,040 26,490 17,376 17,460 16,215 16,283 1,161 1,177 6.7 6.7 6.4 - 7.0

 Hawaii ........................... 927 944 606 618 581 592 26 27 4.2 4.3 3.8 - 4.8

 Oregon .......................... 2,726 2,770 1,840 1,859 1,701 1,707 139 152 7.5 8.2 7.5 - 8.9

 Washington ................... 4,624 4,697 3,109 3,140 2,883 2,903 227 237 7.3 7.5 6.8 - 8.2

Puerto Rico 3 ....................... 2,934 2,980 1,356 1,393 1,190 1,226 166 167 12.3 12.0 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. 

Sub-national data except for Puerto Rico incorporate updated Census 2000-based

population controls. Historical data except for Puerto Rico have been revised.
Table 2. Employment-population ratio of persons 16 years of age and over by region, division, and state, 

2002-03 annual averages

(Percent)

Region, division, and state

Employment-population ratio Over-the-year

change

Error range of

employment-population ratio,

2003 1 2002 2003

 United States ........................................................... 62.7 62.3 -.4 62.1 - 62.5

Northeast ....................................................................... 61.9 61.1 -.8 60.7 - 61.5

 New England .............................................................. 65.2 64.4 -.8 63.7 - 65.1

 Connecticut ............................................................. 64.7 63.6 -1.1 62.1 - 65.1

 Maine ....................................................................... 63.5 63.3 -.2 61.9 - 64.7

 Massachusetts ........................................................ 65.4 64.0 -1.4 62.7 - 65.3

 New Hampshire ....................................................... 68.0 68.5 .5 67.2 - 69.8

 Rhode Island ........................................................... 62.9 64.3 1.4 63.2 - 65.4

 Vermont ................................................................... 68.6 67.7 -.9 66.4 - 69.0

 Middle Atlantic ............................................................ 60.7 59.9 -.8 59.4 - 60.4

 New Jersey .............................................................. 62.5 62.2 -.3 61.2 - 63.2

 New York ................................................................. 59.3 58.6 -.7 57.8 - 59.4

 Pennsylvania ........................................................... 61.8 60.3 -1.5 59.4 - 61.2

Midwest ......................................................................... 65.0 64.6 -.4 64.1 - 65.1

 East North Central ...................................................... 63.4 63.1 -.3 62.5 - 63.7

 Illinois ...................................................................... 62.6 61.6 -1.0 60.6 - 62.6

 Indiana ..................................................................... 64.7 64.6 -.1 63.2 - 66.0

 Michigan .................................................................. 61.3 60.7 -.6 59.5 - 61.9

 Ohio ......................................................................... 63.2 63.3 .1 62.0 - 64.6

 Wisconsin ................................................................ 68.3 68.8 .5 67.3 - 70.3

 West North Central ..................................................... 68.7 68.2 -.5 67.5 - 68.9

 Iowa ......................................................................... 70.3 67.4 -2.9 66.1 - 68.7

 Kansas .................................................................... 65.8 66.2 .4 64.5 - 67.9

 Minnesota ................................................................ 72.4 71.3 -1.1 69.8 - 72.8

 Missouri ................................................................... 65.2 65.5 .3 63.7 - 67.3

 Nebraska ................................................................. 70.6 71.1 .5 69.7 - 72.5

 North Dakota ........................................................... 67.5 67.9 .4 66.0 - 69.8

 South Dakota ........................................................... 71.1 71.1 .0 69.4 - 72.8

South ............................................................................. 61.5 61.3 -.2 60.9 - 61.7

 South Atlantic ............................................................. 62.0 61.9 -.1 61.4 - 62.4

 Delaware ................................................................. 65.1 63.8 -1.3 62.3 - 65.3

 District of Columbia ................................................. 61.9 61.9 .0 60.4 - 63.4

 Florida ..................................................................... 59.1 58.6 -.5 57.6 - 59.6

 Georgia .................................................................... 64.3 65.4 1.1 64.0 - 66.8

 Maryland .................................................................. 67.2 66.3 -.9 64.9 - 67.7

 North Carolina ......................................................... 62.1 62.5 .4 61.1 - 63.9

 South Carolina ......................................................... 58.9 59.4 .5 58.0 - 60.8

 Virginia .................................................................... 65.7 65.4 -.3 63.6 - 67.2

 West Virginia ........................................................... 52.6 51.3 -1.3 49.6 - 53.0

 East South Central ..................................................... 59.3 59.1 -.2 58.2 - 60.0

 Alabama .................................................................. 57.6 58.8 1.2 57.1 - 60.5

 Kentucky .................................................................. 58.3 58.2 -.1 56.3 - 60.1

 Mississippi ............................................................... 56.6 57.5 .9 55.7 - 59.3

 Tennessee ............................................................... 62.4 60.9 -1.5 59.2 - 62.6

 West South Central .................................................... 62.0 61.6 -.4 60.8 - 62.4

 Arkansas ................................................................. 59.0 57.3 -1.7 55.8 - 58.8

 Louisiana ................................................................. 56.4 56.9 .5 55.1 - 58.7

 Oklahoma ................................................................ 61.7 60.5 -1.2 58.9 - 62.1

 Texas ....................................................................... 63.5 63.4 -.1 62.4 - 64.4

West .............................................................................. 63.0 62.4 -.6 62.0 - 62.8

 Mountain ..................................................................... 64.6 64.3 -.3 63.6 - 65.0

 Arizona .................................................................... 62.2 61.5 -.7 59.9 - 63.1

 Colorado .................................................................. 67.7 67.7 .0 66.0 - 69.4

 Idaho ....................................................................... 65.2 64.6 -.6 62.8 - 66.4

 Montana .................................................................. 62.7 63.3 .6 61.4 - 65.2

 Nevada .................................................................... 65.6 64.2 -1.4 62.8 - 65.6

 New Mexico ............................................................. 60.0 59.9 -.1 58.1 - 61.7

 Utah ......................................................................... 66.9 67.3 .4 65.5 - 69.1

 Wyoming ................................................................. 67.6 68.8 1.2 67.2 - 70.4

 Pacific ......................................................................... 62.4 61.6 -.8 61.1 - 62.1

 Alaska ...................................................................... 66.4 66.5 .1 64.1 - 68.9

 California ................................................................. 62.3 61.5 -.8 60.9 - 62.1

 Hawaii ...................................................................... 62.7 62.7 .0 61.4 - 64.0

 Oregon .................................................................... 62.4 61.6 -.8 60.2 - 63.0

 Washington ............................................................. 62.3 61.8 -.5 60.4 - 63.2

Puerto Rico 2 ................................................................. 40.6 41.1 .5 3 () 

1 Error ranges are shown at the 90-percent confidence level. 2 The source of these data is the Puerto Rico Department of Labor and

Human Resources. 3 Not available.

NOTE: Region and division data are derived from summing the component

states. Sub-national data except for Puerto Rico incorporate updated Census

2000-based population controls. Historical data except for Puerto Rico have

been revised.