Regional And State Employment And Unemployment: November 2004 — 2004-12-21

Regional and state unemployment rates were generally little changed in November. All four regions and 47 states and the District of Columbia recorded changes in their jobless rates of 0.3 percentage point or less from October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Over the year, jobless rates declined in all four regions and in 42 states. The national unemployment rate was essentially unchanged over the month at 5.4 percent in November. Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 35 states and the District of Columbia over the month. In November, the Northeast and South reported the lowest unemployment rates among the four regions, 4.8 and 4.9 percent, respectively. The last time the Northeast had the lowest rate among all regions was June 2003. The Midwest recorded the highest rate, 5.6 percent. All regions experienced over-the-year jobless rate declines, led by the Northeast and West (-0.9 per- centage point each).