Of 372 metro areas analyzed by The Wall Street Journal in a recent report, only 27 saw their unemployment rates increase over the past year. Eight metro areas in Louisiana topped their list for rates that had grown the most percentage points.
The unemployment rate climbed 1.6% in Alexandria, which saw the steepest increase. The unemployment rate in November was 6.8% there, up from 5.2% one year earlier.
But a climb in the unemployment rate doesn’t mean that the number of people working has dropped. Of Louisiana’s eight metro areas, Alexandria was also the only one to witness a year-over-year decline in the number of employed workers, according to the report.
Baton Rouge fell seventh on The Wall Street Journal’s list. The unemployment rate in the Baton Rouge metro area in November was 5.9%, up from 4.8% a year earlier. But payroll numbers increased in Baton Rouge by 1.9% last month from the year before.
Four of the five places with the largest increase in their payrolls are in Texas, according to the report, including Midland and Odessa. Two New Jersey metros, Atlantic City and Ocean City, saw the highest drop in their payrolls.
Nearly 40% of the metro areas, or 147, had unemployment rates below 5% in November, a sign that labor markets continue to improve, according to the report. Only 12 metros had jobless rates above 10%.
The report was based on data released Tuesday by the Labor Department, not adjusted for seasonal factors. The Wall Street Journal has the full report.
