2009 Regional and State Unemployment — 2010-03-03

Annual average unemployment rates rose in 2009 in all regions, divisions, and states, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment- population ratios decreased across all of these geographic areas as well. The U.S. jobless rate jumped by 3.5 percentage points from the prior year to 9.3 percent, while the national employment-population ratio fell by 2.9 points to 59.3 percent. All four regions posted statistically significant unemployment rate in- creases from 2008. The West experienced the greatest jump (+3.8 percentage points), followed by the Midwest (+3.6 points), South (+3.4 points), and Northeast (+3.0 points). The West, at 10.1 percent, and Midwest, at 9.6 percent, registered jobless rates significantly higher than the U.S. rate in 2009. The Northeast and South, at 8.4 and 8.9 percent, respectively, both had rates significantly below the national figure. In 2009, the West recorded the highest annual jobless rate in its series.