Metropolitan Area Employment And Unemployment: May 2002 — 2002-07-03

In May, 280 metropolitan areas reported higher unemployment rates than a year earlier, 43 areas had lower rates, and 8 had rates that were unchanged, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Nine metropolitan areas registered jobless rates of at least 10.0 percent, six of which were located in California's Central Valley and two along the Mexican border in other states. Twenty-seven areas recorded unemployment rates below 3.0 percent, with 10 of these areas in the Midwest and 9 in the South. The national unemployment rate in May was 5.5 percent, not seasonally adjusted. Fifty-one metropolitan areas posted unemployment rates of at least 6.5 percent in May, up from 27 areas a year earlier, while 54 areas had rates below 3.5 percent, down from 122 areas in May 2001. Yuma, Ariz., where summer rates are nearly twice those of the winter, continued to record the highest jobless rate, 28.3 percent.