Full text of 2002 Annual Averages : Text File, USDL 03-90
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STATE AND REGIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT, 2002 ANNUAL AVERAGES
Annual average unemployment rates rose between 2001 and 2002 in nearly all
of the states and in each of the Census regions and divisions, the Bureau of
Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Employment-
population ratios declined in 40 states. At the national level, the jobless
rate rose by 1.1 percentage points to 5.8 percent in 2002, while the employ-
ment-population ratio dropped by 1.0 percentage point to 62.7 percent.
State Unemployment
Rising unemployment persisted across the U.S. in 2002. Compared with the
prior year, jobless rates were higher in 47 states, lower in 2 states, and
unchanged in 1 state and the District of Columbia. Two states in the Mountain
division--Colorado and Utah--reported the largest unemployment rate increases
from 2001 (+2.0 and +1.7 percentage points, respectively). Massachusetts and
New Jersey recorded the next largest increases (+1.6 percentage points each).
Seventeen additional states registered over-the-year rate increases of at
least a full percentage point. These 21 states with at least 1.0-percentage
point increases in their unemployment rate were spread across the nation:
6 each were in the Northeast and West, 5 were in the South, and 4 were in the
Midwest. In 2002, only Hawaii and South Dakota reported annual unemployment
rate declines (-0.4 and -0.3 percentage point, respectively). (See table 1.)
For the second year in a row, the states with the highest jobless rates
were located in the Pacific division. Alaska registered the highest rate
in 2002, 7.7 percent, followed by Oregon, 7.5 percent, and Washington,
7.3 percent. Twelve additional states and the District of Columbia posted
unemployment rates of 6.0 percent or more for the year. The lowest jobless
rates in 2002 were in two West North Central states: South Dakota, 3.1 per-
cent, and Nebraska, 3.6 percent. Overall, 32 states had unemployment rates
below the national average, 16 states and the District of Columbia had rates
above it, and 2 states had rates equal to it. All seven states in the West
North Central division and all six in New England posted rates below the U.S.
rate. In contrast, four of the five Pacific states recorded rates above
that of the nation.
Regional Unemployment
The Northeast and West regions experienced the largest jobless rate
increases from 2001 (+1.2 percentage points each), while the Midwest and
South recorded smaller rate increases (+1.0 and +0.9 point, respectively).
For the 11th consecutive year, the West registered the highest regional
unemployment rate, 6.5 percent. The Midwest reported the lowest rate,
5.5 percent. The range between the highest and lowest regional unemploy-
ment rates--1.0 percentage point--increased slightly, after narrowing
substantially since the mid-1990s.
Among the nation's nine geographic divisions, the Mountain division posted
the largest over-the-year unemployment rate increase (+1.3 percentage points),
closely followed by the Middle Atlantic, New England, and Pacific divisions
(+1.2 points each). The smallest jobless rate increases from 2001 were re-
corded in the East South Central and West North Central divisions (+0.7 per-
centage point each). The Pacific also continued to register the highest job-
less rate--for the 11th straight year--6.8 percent. The West South Central
division had the next highest rate, 6.0 percent. The West North Central
division recorded the lowest unemployment rate, 4.6 percent, followed by New
England, 4.9 percent, which had reported the lowest divisional rate for the
prior 2 years.
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State employment-population ratios
In 2002, 40 states and the District of Columbia posted declines
in their employment-population ratios--the proportion of the civilian
noninstitutional population 16 years and over with a job--while 9 states
reported increases. The largest employment-population ratio declines
occurred in Michigan (-3.0 percentage points) and Delaware (-2.6 points).
Four other states recorded decreases of 2.0 percentage points or more from
2001, and 20 additional states and the District of Columbia registered
declines of at least 1.0 point. The largest increases in employment-
population ratios were in South Dakota and Arkansas (+1.2 percentage points
and +1.0 point, respectively). Iowa and Vermont were the only other states
that reported increases of at least 0.5 percentage point. (See table 2.)
West Virginia continued to have the lowest employment-population ratio,
52.6 percent, a decline of 2.0 percentage points from 2001. The seven states
recording the next lowest ratios also were located in the South--Alabama,
Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina--with
employment-population ratios ranging between 56.4 and 59.1 percent. New York,
at 59.3 percent, was the only other state with a ratio below 60.0 percent.
Minnesota again reported the highest proportion of employed persons, 72.4 per-
cent, despite a 0.7-percentage point decline from 2001. Three other Mid-
western states--Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota--registered the next highest
ratios, all of which were over 70.0 percent. Twenty-seven states recorded
employment-population ratios higher than the U.S. figure of 62.7 percent,
while 21 states and the District of Columbia posted lower ratios. All states
in the New England and West North Central divisions had ratios above that of
the U.S., while all of those in the Middle Atlantic and East South Central
divisions had ratios below it.
Regional employment-population ratios
All four regions reported declines in their proportion of employed persons
from 2001, ranging from -1.5 percentage points in the Midwest to -0.2 point
in the Northeast. The Midwest and West continued to register ratios (65.0 and
63.0 percent, respectively) above the U.S. average, while the Northeast
(61.9 percent) and South (61.5 percent) again had lower ratios.
Of the nine geographic divisions, the East North Central recorded the
largest decrease in its employment-population ratio relative to 2001 (-1.9
percentage points). The next largest decreases were in the Pacific, South
Atlantic, and West South Central divisions (-1.0 percentage point each).
The two Northeast divisions--the Middle Atlantic and New England--registered
the smallest declines in 2002 (-0.2 and -0.3 percentage point, respectively).
Once again, the West North Central recorded the highest employment-population
ratio (68.7 percent) and the East South Central registered the lowest
(59.3 percent).
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NOTE
All estimates presented in this release, except those for Puerto Rico,
were derived from the Current Population Survey, a sample survey of about
60,000 households conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by
the U.S. Census Bureau. A description of the survey and information about
the reliability of the state estimates appear in Geographic Profile of
Employment and Unemployment, 2000, Bulletin 2550. Effective with this
release, annual averages for regions, divisions, states, and the District
of Columbia, shown in tables 1 and 2, reflect updated population controls,
incorporating the results of Census 2000. This decennial adjustment gen-
erally results in changes to levels for the current and previous years and
may also affect unemployment rates and employment-population ratios, unlike
the more routine population control updates in other years.
The length of the annual series varies by state and ranges from 27 to
33 years. The region and division annual series begin in 1976.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone number: 1-800-877-8339.
Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years of age and over by region, division, and state,
2001-02 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Population Civilian labor Employed Unemployed Unemployment
force rate Error range of
Region, division, and state rate, 2002(1)
2001 2002 2001 2002 2001 2002 2001 2002 2001 2002
United States(2).......... 215,092 217,570 143,734 144,863 136,933 136,485 6,801 8,378 4.7 5.8 5.7 - 5.9
Northeast...................... 41,678 42,028 27,070 27,576 25,883 26,026 1,187 1,550 4.4 5.6 5.4 - 5.8
New England................. 10,909 11,020 7,422 7,556 7,150 7,190 272 367 3.7 4.9 4.7 - 5.1
Connecticut.............. 2,604 2,623 1,755 1,773 1,698 1,696 57 77 3.3 4.3 3.8 - 4.8
Maine.................... 1,019 1,034 686 686 658 656 27 30 3.9 4.4 3.9 - 4.9
Massachusetts............ 5,003 5,046 3,393 3,486 3,268 3,301 125 185 3.7 5.3 4.9 - 5.7
New Hampshire............ 972 989 700 706 676 672 25 33 3.5 4.7 4.2 - 5.2
Rhode Island............. 827 840 548 556 522 528 26 28 4.7 5.1 4.6 - 5.6
Vermont.................. 484 489 340 349 328 336 12 13 3.6 3.7 3.3 - 4.1
Middle Atlantic............. 30,769 31,008 19,648 20,020 18,734 18,836 915 1,183 4.7 5.9 5.7 - 6.1
New Jersey............... 6,513 6,585 4,305 4,368 4,125 4,113 180 255 4.2 5.8 5.4 - 6.2
New York................. 14,701 14,816 9,132 9,362 8,689 8,790 443 573 4.9 6.1 5.8 - 6.4
Pennsylvania............. 9,555 9,607 6,212 6,290 5,920 5,934 291 356 4.7 5.7 5.3 - 6.1
Midwest........................ 49,197 49,600 34,265 34,125 32,711 32,247 1,554 1,878 4.5 5.5 5.3 - 5.7
East North Central.......... 34,465 34,721 23,637 23,410 22,496 22,024 1,141 1,385 4.8 5.9 5.7 - 6.1
Illinois................. 9,440 9,524 6,473 6,378 6,125 5,963 349 415 5.4 6.5 6.1 - 6.9
Indiana.................. 4,626 4,656 3,134 3,175 2,998 3,012 136 163 4.4 5.1 4.6 - 5.6
Michigan................. 7,594 7,650 5,158 5,001 4,886 4,691 271 310 5.3 6.2 5.8 - 6.6
Ohio..................... 8,664 8,701 5,844 5,828 5,596 5,497 248 331 4.2 5.7 5.3 - 6.1
Wisconsin................ 4,141 4,190 3,028 3,028 2,891 2,861 137 167 4.5 5.5 4.9 - 6.1
West North Central.......... 14,732 14,879 10,628 10,716 10,215 10,223 413 493 3.9 4.6 4.4 - 4.8
Iowa..................... 2,261 2,277 1,625 1,667 1,572 1,601 54 67 3.3 4.0 3.5 - 4.5
Kansas................... 2,021 2,041 1,383 1,414 1,324 1,342 59 72 4.3 5.1 4.5 - 5.7
Minnesota................ 3,805 3,855 2,889 2,918 2,783 2,790 106 128 3.7 4.4 3.9 - 4.9
Missouri................. 4,288 4,330 3,020 2,990 2,879 2,825 141 165 4.7 5.5 5.0 - 6.0
Nebraska................. 1,298 1,311 953 959 923 925 29 34 3.1 3.6 3.1 - 4.1
North Dakota............. 490 492 346 346 336 332 10 14 2.9 4.0 3.5 - 4.5
South Dakota............. 569 574 412 421 398 408 14 13 3.4 3.1 2.7 - 3.5
South.......................... 76,681 77,831 50,296 50,711 47,922 47,861 2,374 2,849 4.7 5.6 5.5 - 5.7
South Atlantic.............. 40,140 40,766 26,479 26,682 25,283 25,255 1,197 1,427 4.5 5.3 5.1 - 5.5
Delaware................. 612 622 429 423 414 405 15 18 3.4 4.2 3.7 - 4.7
District of Columbia..... 462 460 313 304 293 285 20 20 6.4 6.4 5.8 - 7.0
Florida.................. 12,687 12,926 8,020 8,084 7,639 7,642 381 442 4.8 5.5 5.2 - 5.8
Georgia.................. 6,223 6,337 4,220 4,292 4,053 4,071 167 221 4.0 5.1 4.6 - 5.6
Maryland................. 4,065 4,126 2,841 2,898 2,727 2,772 114 126 4.0 4.4 3.9 - 4.9
North Carolina........... 6,187 6,262 4,202 4,171 3,971 3,890 231 281 5.5 6.7 6.1 - 7.3
South Carolina........... 3,096 3,145 1,952 1,968 1,848 1,851 104 117 5.3 6.0 5.4 - 6.6
Virginia................. 5,379 5,454 3,680 3,735 3,556 3,583 125 152 3.4 4.1 3.6 - 4.6
West Virginia............ 1,432 1,436 822 804 782 755 40 49 4.8 6.1 5.5 - 6.7
East South Central.......... 13,083 13,200 8,285 8,293 7,868 7,821 417 472 5.0 5.7 5.4 - 6.0
Alabama.................. 3,411 3,432 2,135 2,103 2,022 1,978 112 124 5.3 5.9 5.3 - 6.5
Kentucky................. 3,144 3,184 1,985 1,966 1,878 1,857 107 110 5.4 5.6 5.0 - 6.2
Mississippi.............. 2,122 2,136 1,305 1,298 1,234 1,210 71 88 5.5 6.8 6.1 - 7.5
Tennessee................ 4,407 4,448 2,860 2,926 2,733 2,776 126 150 4.4 5.1 4.5 - 5.7
West South Central.......... 23,457 23,864 15,531 15,735 14,771 14,785 760 950 4.9 6.0 5.7 - 6.3
Arkansas................. 2,044 2,060 1,248 1,285 1,185 1,216 63 70 5.0 5.4 4.8 - 6.0
Louisiana................ 3,314 3,336 2,053 2,006 1,931 1,883 122 123 5.9 6.1 5.4 - 6.8
Oklahoma................. 2,590 2,619 1,671 1,693 1,607 1,617 64 76 3.8 4.5 3.9 - 5.1
Texas.................... 15,510 15,849 10,560 10,751 10,048 10,070 512 681 4.8 6.3 6.0 - 6.6
West........................... 47,962 48,899 32,428 32,947 30,722 30,811 1,706 2,136 5.3 6.5 6.3 - 6.7
Mountain.................... 13,844 14,158 9,502 9,707 9,074 9,148 427 559 4.5 5.8 5.5 - 6.1
Arizona.................. 3,928 4,033 2,580 2,672 2,458 2,507 121 165 4.7 6.2 5.5 - 6.9
Colorado................. 3,328 3,394 2,379 2,437 2,291 2,298 89 140 3.7 5.7 5.2 - 6.2
Idaho.................... 970 989 681 684 647 645 34 40 5.0 5.8 5.2 - 6.4
Montana.................. 698 706 463 464 442 442 22 21 4.6 4.6 4.0 - 5.2
Nevada................... 1,564 1,616 1,104 1,122 1,045 1,060 59 62 5.3 5.5 5.0 - 6.0
New Mexico............... 1,360 1,382 861 878 820 830 42 48 4.8 5.4 4.8 - 6.0
Utah..................... 1,619 1,655 1,161 1,180 1,110 1,108 51 72 4.4 6.1 5.5 - 6.7
Wyoming.................. 378 383 272 270 262 259 11 11 3.9 4.2 3.7 - 4.7
Pacific..................... 34,118 34,742 22,926 23,240 21,647 21,663 1,279 1,577 5.6 6.8 6.6 - 7.0
Alaska................... 440 449 320 323 299 298 21 25 6.4 7.7 7.0 - 8.4
California............... 25,600 26,083 17,183 17,405 16,260 16,242 923 1,163 5.4 6.7 6.4 - 7.0
Hawaii................... 872 889 591 582 564 557 27 25 4.6 4.2 3.7 - 4.7
Oregon................... 2,673 2,716 1,817 1,834 1,702 1,695 115 138 6.3 7.5 6.8 - 8.2
Washington............... 4,533 4,605 3,015 3,097 2,822 2,871 193 226 6.4 7.3 6.6 - 8.0
Puerto Rico(3)................. 2,873 2,934 1,297 1,356 1,150 1,190 147 166 11.4 12.3 (4)
1 Error ranges are shown at the 90-percent confidence level.
2 Because of separate processing and weighting procedures, totals for the United States differ from the results obtained by
aggregating data for regions, divisions, or states.
3 The source of these data is the Puerto Rico Department of Labor and Human Resources.
4 Not available.
NOTE: Region and division data are derived from summing the component states. Sub-national data incorporate updated 2000 census-based
population controls.
Table 2. Employment-population ratio of persons 16 years of age and over by region, division, and state,
2001-02 annual averages
(Percent)
Region, division, and state Employment-population
ratio(1) Over-the-year Error range of
change employment-population
ratio, 2002(1)
2001 2002
United States................. 63.7 62.7 -1.0 62.5 - 62.9
Northeast.......................... 62.1 61.9 -0.2 61.5 - 62.3
New England..................... 65.5 65.2 -0.3 64.5 - 65.9
Connecticut.................. 65.2 64.7 -0.5 63.1 - 66.3
Maine........................ 64.6 63.5 -1.1 62.0 - 65.0
Massachusetts................ 65.3 65.4 0.1 64.1 - 66.7
New Hampshire................ 69.5 68.0 -1.5 66.6 - 69.4
Rhode Island................. 63.1 62.9 -0.2 61.7 - 64.1
Vermont...................... 67.7 68.6 0.9 67.2 - 70.0
Middle Atlantic................. 60.9 60.7 -0.2 60.2 - 61.2
New Jersey................... 63.3 62.5 -0.8 61.5 - 63.5
New York..................... 59.1 59.3 0.2 58.5 - 60.1
Pennsylvania................. 62.0 61.8 -0.2 60.9 - 62.7
Midwest............................ 66.5 65.0 -1.5 64.6 - 65.4
East North Central.............. 65.3 63.4 -1.9 62.8 - 64.0
Illinois..................... 64.9 62.6 -2.3 61.6 - 63.6
Indiana...................... 64.8 64.7 -0.1 63.2 - 66.2
Michigan..................... 64.3 61.3 -3.0 60.1 - 62.5
Ohio......................... 64.6 63.2 -1.4 62.0 - 64.4
Wisconsin.................... 69.8 68.3 -1.5 66.8 - 69.8
West North Central.............. 69.3 68.7 -0.6 68.0 - 69.4
Iowa......................... 69.5 70.3 0.8 69.0 - 71.6
Kansas....................... 65.5 65.8 0.3 64.1 - 67.5
Minnesota.................... 73.1 72.4 -0.7 70.8 - 74.0
Missouri..................... 67.1 65.2 -1.9 63.4 - 67.0
Nebraska..................... 71.1 70.6 -0.5 69.2 - 72.0
North Dakota................. 68.5 67.5 -1.0 65.6 - 69.4
South Dakota................. 69.9 71.1 1.2 69.4 - 72.8
South.............................. 62.5 61.5 -1.0 61.1 - 61.9
South Atlantic.................. 63.0 62.0 -1.0 61.5 - 62.5
Delaware..................... 67.7 65.1 -2.6 63.6 - 66.6
District of Columbia......... 63.4 61.9 -1.5 60.4 - 63.4
Florida...................... 60.2 59.1 -1.1 58.2 - 60.0
Georgia...................... 65.1 64.3 -0.8 62.9 - 65.7
Maryland..................... 67.1 67.2 0.1 65.8 - 68.6
North Carolina............... 64.2 62.1 -2.1 60.8 - 63.4
South Carolina............... 59.7 58.9 -0.8 57.4 - 60.4
Virginia..................... 66.1 65.7 -0.4 63.9 - 67.5
West Virginia................ 54.6 52.6 -2.0 50.9 - 54.3
East South Central.............. 60.1 59.3 -0.8 58.4 - 60.2
Alabama...................... 59.3 57.6 -1.7 55.9 - 59.3
Kentucky..................... 59.7 58.3 -1.4 56.4 - 60.2
Mississippi.................. 58.2 56.6 -1.6 54.8 - 58.4
Tennessee.................... 62.0 62.4 0.4 60.7 - 64.1
West South Central.............. 63.0 62.0 -1.0 61.3 - 62.7
Arkansas..................... 58.0 59.0 1.0 57.5 - 60.5
Louisiana.................... 58.3 56.4 -1.9 54.7 - 58.1
Oklahoma..................... 62.1 61.7 -0.4 60.1 - 63.3
Texas........................ 64.8 63.5 -1.3 62.5 - 64.5
West............................... 64.1 63.0 -1.1 62.6 - 63.4
Mountain........................ 65.5 64.6 -0.9 63.9 - 65.3
Arizona...................... 62.6 62.2 -0.4 60.6 - 63.8
Colorado..................... 68.8 67.7 -1.1 65.9 - 69.5
Idaho........................ 66.7 65.2 -1.5 63.5 - 66.9
Montana...................... 63.3 62.7 -0.6 60.9 - 64.5
Nevada....................... 66.8 65.6 -1.2 64.1 - 67.1
New Mexico................... 60.3 60.0 -0.3 58.3 - 61.7
Utah......................... 68.6 66.9 -1.7 65.1 - 68.7
Wyoming...................... 69.3 67.6 -1.7 66.0 - 69.2
Pacific......................... 63.4 62.4 -1.0 61.9 - 62.9
Alaska....................... 68.0 66.4 -1.6 64.0 - 68.8
California................... 63.5 62.3 -1.2 61.7 - 62.9
Hawaii....................... 64.7 62.7 -2.0 61.3 - 64.1
Oregon....................... 63.7 62.4 -1.3 61.0 - 63.8
Washington................... 62.3 62.3 0.0 60.9 - 63.7
Puerto Rico(2)..................... 40.0 40.6 0.6 (3)
1 Error ranges are shown at the 90-percent confidence level.
2 The source of these data is the Puerto Rico Department of Labor and Human Resources.
3 Not available.