In December 2024, Nevada had the highest unemployment rate in the United States, with an unemployment rate of 5.7. The unemployment rate was also high in the District of Columbia, with an unemployment rate of 5.6 percent in December. Unemployment in the U.S. A person is considered unemployed if they have no job and are currently looking for a job and available to work. The unemployment rate in the United States varies across states. Nation-wide unemployment was 3.4 percent as of April 2023. Unemployment can be affected by various factors including economic conditions and global competition. During economic prosperity, unemployment rates generally decrease and during times of recession, rates increase. The seasons can also have an impact on the unemployment rate, especially during winter, when there is lower demand for construction workers or other professionals who typically work outdoors. The retail sector also experiences fluctuating demand for workers, particularly during the holiday-shopping season, when demand for workers increases. For this reason, labor statistics are usually presented as being either seasonally adjusted or unadjusted. The data presented in this statistic have been seasonally adjusted, but the monthly unadjusted unemployment rate can be accessed here.

In July 2024, 3.16 billion U.S. dollars were paid out in unemployment benefits in the United States. This is an increase from June 2024, when 2.62 billion U.S. dollars were paid in unemployment benefits. The large figures seen in 2020 are largely due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Welfare in the U.S. Unemployment benefits first started in 1935 during the Great Depression as a part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. The Social Security Act of 1935 ensured that Americans would not fall deeper into poverty. The United States was the only developed nation in the world at the time that did not offer any welfare benefits. This program created unemployment benefits, Medicare and Medicaid, and maternal and child welfare. The only major welfare program that the United States currently lacks is a paid maternity leave policy. Currently, the United States only offers 12 unpaid weeks of leave, under certain circumstances. However, the number of people without health insurance in the United States has greatly decreased since 2010. Unemployment benefits Current unemployment benefits in the United States vary from state to state due to unemployment being funded by both the state and the federal government. The average duration of people collecting unemployment benefits in the United States has fluctuated since January 2020, from as little as 4.55 weeks to as many as 50.32 weeks. The unemployment rate varies by ethnicity, gender, and education levels. For example, those aged 16 to 24 have faced the highest unemployment rates since 1990 during the pandemic. In February 2023, the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV metropolitan area had the highest unemployment rate in the United States.

Unemployment Rate in the United States decreased to 4.10 percent in June from 4.20 percent in May of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

During the week ending May 20, 2023, unemployment insurance claims in U.S. states totaled 202,044 claims, an increase from the previous week when there were 200,738 claims. During the week, California was the most affected state, with 45,667 initial unemployment insurance claims.

In April 2025, the agriculture and related private wage and salary workers industry had the highest unemployment rate in the United States, at eight percent. In comparison, government workers had the lowest unemployment rate, at 1.8 percent. The average for all industries was 3.9 percent. U.S. unemployment There are several factors that impact unemployment, as it fluctuates with the state of the economy. Unfortunately, the forecasted unemployment rate in the United States is expected to increase as we head into the latter half of the decade. Those with a bachelor’s degree or higher saw the lowest unemployment rate from 1992 to 2022 in the United States, which is attributed to the fact that higher levels of education are seen as more desirable in the workforce. Nevada unemployment Nevada is one of the states with the highest unemployment rates in the country and Vermont typically has one of the lowest unemployment rates. These are seasonally adjusted rates, which means that seasonal factors such as holiday periods and weather events that influence employment periods are removed. Nevada's economy consists of industries that are currently suffering high unemployment rates such as tourism. As of May 2023, about 5.4 percent of Nevada's population was unemployed, possibly due to the lingering impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Initial Jobless Claims in the United States decreased to 227 thousand in the week ending July 5 of 2025 from 232 thousand in the previous week. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Initial Jobless Claims - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Graph and download economic data for Income Before Taxes: Unemployment and Workers' Compensation, Veterans' Benefits, and Regular Contributions by Highest Education: College Graduate: Bachelor's Degree (CXUOTHREGINLB1408M) from 2013 to 2023 about veterans, contributions, compensation, benefits, tertiary schooling, workers, tax, education, income, unemployment, and USA.

This statistic shows the unemployment rate of veterans in the United States in 2023, by state. In that year, New Mexico had the highest unemployment rate of veterans, at 7.1 percent. Connecticut had the lowest unemployment rate of veterans at 0.4 percent.

Graph and download economic data for Income Before Taxes: Unemployment and Workers' Compensation, Veterans Benefits by Quintiles of Income Before Taxes: Highest 20 Percent (81st to 100th Percentile) (CXUOTHBNFTSLB0106M) from 1984 to 2012 about veterans, compensation, percentile, benefits, workers, tax, income, unemployment, and USA.

The U.S. Department of Labor has been working collaboratively with our state partners to identify several robust strategies that focus on the prevention of overpayments and will yield the highest impact in reducing UI improper payment rates.

Improper Unemployment Insurance benefit payments are most likely to occur when:

Recipients continue to claim benefits after returning to work; Employers or their third party administrators do not submit timely or accurate separation information; and Claimants fail to register with the state's Employment Service (ES) as dictated by state law. Earlier this year, the Department actively intervened to encourage the ten states with the highest Employment Service registration error rates to focus on the issue. Senior DOL officials personally contacted these states to determine specific steps the states would take to address their error rates, and the Department provided targeted technical assistance.

As a result, dramatic progress is being made in this area, with a 23% reduction in improper payments to people who did not register with employment services agencies, including a more than 35% drop in eight states.

In 2023, Nevada had the highest annual unemployment rate in the United States at 5.1 percent. North Dakota had the lowest unemployment rate that year, at 1.9 percent. The monthly unemployment rate by state can be found here.

Employment Rate in the United States remained unchanged at 59.70 percent in June. This dataset provides - United States Employment Rate- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Graph and download economic data for Income Before Taxes: Unemployment and Workers' Compensation, Veterans Benefits by Highest Education: Less Than College Graduate: Less Than High School Graduate (CXUOTHBNFTSLB1403M) from 2012 to 2012 about veterans, no college, secondary schooling, secondary, compensation, benefits, workers, tax, education, income, unemployment, and USA.

The Unemployment Insurance Financial Data Handbook is intended primarily for the use of State Workforce Agencies and others in projecting unemployment insurance benefits costs and in the analysis of various aspects of benefit financing. Most of these data were compiled from monthly and quarterly statistical and accounting reports submitted by the State Workforce Agencies to the Employment and Training Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor. Revised data and corrections have been incorporated into these tables to the extent possible. Data contained in this Handbook may not be identical with state records. Significant corrections and/or additions, as well as any comments, should be emailed along with any questions and suggestions to the USDOL National Office. In comparing data for different states or years, analysts should consider differences in coverage provisions, benefits formulas, tax bases, economic conditions, etc. They should use the expertise of the State agency and the national office personnel in determining significant changes in data among States of years and understand the General Notes and the Glossary prior to using the Handbook data.

This dataset provides the unemployment rate (UR) by usual status (ps+ss) for individuals aged 15 years and above, categorized by their highest level of education completed, for each state and union territory. Sourced from the PLFS, it enables the examination of unemployment trends relative to education levels across regions. For 2023-24, Chandigarh's entire area has been considered urban for this survey. Before 2019-20, Ladakh was part of Jammu and Kashmir, and since 2020-21, Daman and Diu have been merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli to form the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

Rates shown are a percentage of the labor force. Data refer to place of residence. Series begin in January 1976. Historical highs and lows show the most recent month that a rate was recorded in the event of multiple occurrences. Estimates for at least the latest five years are subject to revision early in the following calendar year. Estimates for the current month are subject to revision the following month.

The Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program is a federal-state cooperative effort which produces monthly estimates of produces monthly and annual employment, unemployment, and labor force data for approximately 7,000 areas including Census regions and divisions, States, counties, metropolitan areas, and many cities.

This dataset includes data for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. To only see data for Connecticut, create a filter where "State name" is equal to "Connecticut".

For more information on the LAUS program and data visit: https://www.bls.gov/lau/

For more information from the CT Department of Labor visit: https://www1.ctdol.state.ct.us/lmi/LAUS/default.asp

In 2024, six percent of the Black or African-American population in the United States were unemployed, the highest unemployment rate of any ethnicity. In 2024, the national unemployment rate stood at four percent.

We examine state-level variation in the flow of benefits under the largest Social Security program - the Old Age (OA) program. Old age pensions remain a robust and growing component of the American social safety net. Although old age pensions are entirely administered by the federal government, state-level demographic features can imply different aggregate levels of program expenditures across states. We describe high levels of variation in the resources flowing into states from the OA program and we find relationships between state features that might seem only remotely related to income support for the elderly: current unemployment rates, previous income levels, poverty rates, and minority populations. We find a particularly strong link between current unemployment rates, OA coverage, and OA average benefits. The number of recipients and the level of average OA payments increase when unemployment increases. This is a poorly understood but important feature of the OA program.

Labor Force Participation Rate in the United States decreased to 62.30 percent in June from 62.40 percent in May of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Labor Force Participation Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.