The year 2015 has been quite an important year for the employment situation in the country. Though it did not witness drastic fall or significant climb, It has more or less carried over the legacy of 2014, an important year that saw fast-paced improvement by creating jobs across sectors and therefore directly impacting the jobless rates by bringing them down, month on month.
The year 2015 ended on a happy note with an overall employment rate of just 5 percent at the end of December 2015. As our duty has been, we bring to you, a synopsis of of the monthly news release by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor titled “REGIONAL AND STATE EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT — DECEMBER 2015” aimed at providing comprehensive data on employment numbers across states and regions. The following sections will help you gauge the overall employment situation in the country and look forward to 2016 with confidence of better times.
The national jobless rate remained the same as November 2015, but was down by 0.6 percentage points from December 2014. Over 50% or 25 states witnessed fall in jobless rates, 14 states saw spikes and 11 states along with District of Columbia remained stable with no changes.
Split – State-wise (Non-farm Payroll Employment & Unemployment)
During December 2015, employment increased in 36 states while D.C along with 14 states lost jobs from the numbers it held during the previous calendar month.
Top 3 States with biggest job gains (Over the month)
1) California (+60,400)
2) Texas (+24,900)
3) Florida (+29,900)
Top 3 States with considerable number of job declines (Over the month)
1) Illinois (-16,300)
2) Oklahoma (-5,100)
3) North Dakota (-4,000)
Top 5 States With Highest Incline in Employment Rate (Over the month)
1) Alaska (+0.8%)
2) Arkansas, South Carolina and Tennessee ( +0.9 %)
The Top States with Considerable Decline in Employment Rate (Over the Month)
1) North Dakota (-0.9%)
2) Vermont (-0.7%)
3) Wyoming (-0.6 %)
Compared to the same month last year (Over the year), 43 states added considerable numbers of jobs in its kitty while the rest 7 states with D.C lost jobs during this period. Idaho (+4.4 %) led the bandwagon of states that added the highest number of jobs followed by South Carolina (+3.3 %) & Utah (+3.2 %). The biggest over-the-year decrease in employment percentage was led by North Dakota (-4.0 %) followed by Wyoming (-2.2 %) & West Virginia (-1.5 %).
State Unemployment
- North Dakota continued to remain Numero Uno with a jobless rate of 2.7 percent. It remains a model state for rest of the country in terms of remaining a highly stable state which ensures maximum employment for its working-class citizens.
- On the contrary, with a jobless rate of 6.7%, New Mexico was the top contender in the category of states that did not perform in this area of economic significance.
- During December last year, 18 states recorded jobless rates lower than the national average of 5.0%.
- 23 states recorded rates that hovered around the national average and 9 states with D.C registered significantly lower rates to the U.S average.
Break Up – Region wise (Non-farm Payroll)
During December 2015, Midwest continued to lead the pack with the lowest unemployment rate of 4.7 % and the West had the highest rate with 5.4 percent. Over the year, all four regions recorded a significant drop in jobless rates.
- Northeast – 4.9%
- South – 5.2%
- Midwest – 4.7%
- West – 5.4%
Split By Geographic Division
West North Central – 3.8 percent (Lowest)
East South Central – 5.9 percent (Highest)