ChartingTheEconomy.Com

This chart shows the unemployment rate by state for January 2009.  The February data will not be released for a couple of weeks.  However, the national unemployment numbers for February are out and show a .5% increase from January 2009.  Given this, it is safe to assume that when the state unemployment data for February is released we will see an upward spike for most (if not all) states. For now, this chart gives a good comparison of the employment picture among the states.

Also, as I have indicated in prior charts it is important to remember the offical unemployment numbers do not reflect the true employment situation.  They do not count:  1) people who have dropped out of the labor force but want a job, and 2) those who work part-time but want full-time employment. When you include these individuals the national “suffering rate” (as I refer to it) is more than twice the offical unemployment rate on a national basis.  Accordingly, on a state level the suffering rates are likely more than double the rates in the above chart.

As you can see from the chart, there are several states that have unemployment rates above 10%.  When the February numbers are released I suspect that a couple more states will be added to the 10%+ category.  What is worse is that the suffering rates in these states is likely above 20%.

Data Source:
Bureau of Labor Statistics,  Table 3.  Civilian labor force and unemployment by state and selected area, seasonally adjusted.

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