The U.S. Labor Department announced today that regional and state unemployment
rates were little changed in July.
According to the report, 18 states and the District of Columbia recorded
unemployment rate decreases from the previous month, while 14 states registered
rate increases; 18 states had no change.
In terms of changes from a year ago, 27 states and the District of Columbia
reported unemployment rate decreases, 20 states posted increases, and 3 states had no change.
July's report was slightly worse than June's, when unemployment rates declined in more than
half of all states for a third straight month -- and only five states saw unemployment rate increases.
Nevada again reported the highest unemployment rate among the states at 14.3
percent in July. The states with the next highest rates were Michigan, at 13.1 percent,
and California, 12.3 percent.
North Dakota continued to register the lowest jobless rate -- at 3.6 percent,
followed by South Dakota and Nebraska, at 4.4 and 4.7 percent, respectively.
Regionally, the West reported the highest unemployment rate in July at 10.8
percent, while the Northeast recorded the lowest rate, at 8.8 percent.
August 6, 2010
As U.S. economy sputters along, so, unfortunately, does the hiring. The good
news is that employers did hire in July -- just weakly.
The Labor Department announced today that private employers added 71,000
jobs last month, but when combined with a big loss in local and state government
jobs, the result was only a net gain of 12,000 jobs.
May and June employment numbers were also revised, with June employment numbers getting
smaller while May hiring went higher. June's private-sector job gains were changed to
31,000 from 83,000, while May's gains were revised to show 51,000 net new jobs, up from 33,000.
We continue to struggle to regain the millions of jobs lost in 2008 and 2009,
but the trend -- however slow and sputtering -- is encouraging. A total of 8.4 million
jobs were lost in the recession, and so far in 2010, a little more than half a million
jobs have been added.
The nation's unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.5 percent.
As has been the case over the past two an da half years, persistence and smart job-hunting
will eventually lead to new employment, but the time-frame can be daunting and the struggle
frightening.
On a side note, Quintessential Careers is happy to once again get this blog up and rolling
again after a lengthy relocation from Florida to Washington that resulted in some
cutbacks in our services while we completed the move -- and construction -- to our new
offices.
Quintessential Resume & Cover Letter Tips Blog,
a blog from another part of the QuintCareers Network, with new resume and cover letter tips daily. A must-see for any active job-seeker.
The Career Doctor Blog,
a blog from another part of the QuintCareers Network, where each day our own Career Doctor Randall Hansen answers one career, job, college, or workplace question.
and reassurance.
The Occupational Adventure
Blog, from Curt Rosengren, a Passion Catalyst. Curt's older blog is great for finding encouraging ideas
(and resources) for moving forward with your career... a career that lights your fire. His newer blog is the
Passion Catalyst -- about loving your work.
Blue Sky Resumes Blog, from career
expert Louise Fletcher, a general career and job-search blog that covers all aspects of the job-hunt.
WorkStrong -- a
candid, completely honest discussion of the job market -- offering information and advice
about what it takes to succeed in the 21st Century world of work. From career and recruitment guru Peter Weddle.
