Regional and State Employment and Unemployment (Monthly) News Release — 2011-03-25

Regional and state unemployment rates were generally little changed in February. Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia recorded unemployment rate decreases, 7 states registered rate increases, and 16 states had no change, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Forty-one states and the District of Columbia posted unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier, 7 states reported increases, and 2 states had no change. The national jobless rate was 8.9 percent in February, little changed from January but 0.8 percentage point lower than a year earlier. In February nonfarm payroll employment increased in 35 states, decreased in 14 states and the District of Columbia, and was unchanged in 1 state. The largest over-the-month increase in employment occurred in California (+96,500), followed by Pennsylvania (+23,700), Florida and Texas (+22,700 each), and Illinois (+17,600).