October Spotlight Comparative Looks at Unemployment Due to differing economies and labor force conditions across various regions of the country, unemploy- ment rates vary greatly from state to state. In October 2017, state jobless rates ranged from a low of 2.2 percent in Hawaii to a high of 7.2 percent in Alaska. The unemployment rate in Arkansas in October increased to 3.6 percent, a ranking of 16 out of 51 states. By looking at the map below, it becomes ap- parent that trends exist among states that are located within the same region. While there are some ex- ceptions, western states tend to have higher jobless rates than states located in the Midwest. Similarly, states located in the northeast generally experience lower unemployment rates than states located in the southeast. These regional trends occur because states often experience economic similarities based on shared industries, work forces, and climates. Unemployment Rates, Ranked by State (Seasonally Adjusted) October 2017 Rank 1 State Hawaii Rate 2.2 Rank 16 Florida Rate 3.6 Rank 33 Michigan Rate 4.5 2 North Dakota 2.5 16 Kansas 3.6 33 Washington 4.5 3 Colorado 2.7 16 Virginia 3.6 37 Pennsylvania 4.7 3 Nebraska 2.7 21 Massachusetts 3.7 38 Delaware 4.8 3 New Hampshire 2.7 22 Maryland 3.8 38 Louisiana 4.8 6 Idaho 2.9 23 Indiana 3.9 38 New York 4.8 6 Vermont 2.9 23 Montana 3.9 41 California 4.9 8 Iowa 3.0 23 South Carolina 3.9 41 Illinois 4.9 8 Tennessee 3.0 23 Texas 3.9 41 Mississippi 4.9 10 Minnesota 3.3 27 North Carolina 4.1 41 New Jersey 4.9 10 Utah 3.3 28 Rhode Island 4.2 45 Kentucky 5.0 12 Wisconsin 3.4 28 Wyoming 4.2 45 Nevada 5.0 13 Maine 3.5 30 Georgia 4.3 47 Ohio 5.1 13 Missouri 3.5 30 Oregon 4.3 47 West Virginia 5.1 13 South Dakota 3.5 32 Oklahoma 4.4 49 New Mexico 6.1 16 Alabama 3.6 33 Arizona 4.5 50 District of Columbia 6.6 16 Arkansas 3.6 33 Connecticut 4.5 51 Alaska 7.2 Oregon North Dakota South Dakota Nebraska Minnesota Iowa Maine Vermont New Hampshire New YorkMassachusetts Illinois Indiana Jersey Nevada Utah West Vir aMaryland California New Mexico Arkansas Kentucky Tennessee Virginia North Carolina Unemployment Rates M
Fort Smith MSA The Fort Smith MSA= Crawford & Sebastian counties in Arkansas & LeFlore & Sequoyah counties in Oklahoma. Civilian Labor Force Estimates (Not Seasonally Adjusted) Oct 17 Sep 17 Oct 16 OTM OT Y Civilian Force 122,455 122,563 121,476 -108 979 Employment 117,753 117,631 116,363 122 1,390 Unemployment 4,702 4,932 5,113 -230 -411 Unemployment Rate 3.8 4.0 4.2 -0.2 -0.4 Nonfarm Payroll Jobs (Not Seasonally Adjusted) (In Thousands) 90.8 91.6 Unemployment Rates October: 1997 - 2017 9.0 Jobs in Service-Providing Industries January 2015 - October 2017 93,000 8.0 92,000 7.0 91,000 6.0 90,000 5.0 89,000 4.0 88,000
Jonesboro MSA The Jonesboro MSA= Craighead & Poinsett counties. Civilian Labor Force Estimates (Not Seasonally Adjusted) Oct 17 Sep 17 Oct 16 OTM OT Y Civilian Force 64,437 64,584 62,541 -147 1,896 Employment 62,679 62,700 60,708 -21 1,971 Unemployment 1,758 1,884 1,833 -126 -75 Unemployment Rate 2.7 2.9 2.9 -0.2 -0.2 Nonfarm Payroll Jobs (Not Seasonally Adjusted) (In Thousands) 70,000 Employment and Unemployment October: 2007 - 2017 Employment + Unemployment = Civilian Labor Force 65,000 60,000 55,000 50,000 45,000 40,000 '07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 Employment Unemployment