In June, 68 metropolitan areas reported jobless rates of at least 7.0 percent, up from 22 areas a year earlier, while 36 areas posted rates below 4.0 percent, down from 96 areas in June 2007. El Centro, Calif., continued to register the highest unemployment rate, 22.6 percent, followed by the adjacent area of Yuma, Ariz., at 17.7 percent. Sioux Falls, S.D., and Idaho Falls, Idaho, reported the lowest jobless rates, 2.3 and 2.4 percent, respectively. Overall, 156 areas recorded unemployment rates above the U.S. figure of 5.7 percent, 203 areas had rates below it, and 10 areas had the same rate.
The area reporting the largest jobless rate increase from June 2007 was El Centro, Calif. (+5.5 percentage points). Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla., Elkhart-Goshen, Ind., and Longview, Wash., recorded the next largest rate increases (+2.8 percentage points each). Twenty-three additional areas registered over-the-year unemployment rate increases of 2.0 percentage points or more, and another 157 areas had increases of 1.0 to 1.9 points. Jonesboro, Ark., experienced the largest jobless rate decrease from a year earlier (-0.9 percentage point).
Of the 49 metropolitan areas with a Census 2000 population of 1 million or more, Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., again recorded the highest unemployment rate, 9.7 percent in June. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif., registered the next highest rate, 8.0 percent. The large area with the lowest jobless rate was Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va., at 3.9 percent. Forty-seven large areas posted higher unemployment rates than in June 2007, and two reported lower rates. Providence-Fall River-Warwick, R.I.-Mass., had the largest over-the-year jobless rate increase (+2.4 per- centage points), followed by Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif., and Memphis, Tenn.-Miss.-Ark. (+2.1 and +2.0 points, respectively). Twenty-five additional large areas had over-the-year unemployment rate increases of 1.0 percentage point or more. No large area had a rate decrease of more than 0.4 percentage point from a year earlier.
Metropolitan Division Unemployment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Eleven of the most populous metropolitan areas are composed of 34 metropolitan divisions, which are essentially separately identifiable employment centers. In June, the two divisions that comprise the Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., metropolitan area again posted the highest unemployment rates: Detroit-Livonia- Dearborn, 11.0 percent, and Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, 8.8 percent. Bethesda- Frederick-Gaithersburg, Md., continued to report the lowest jobless rate among the divisions, 3.3 percent.
In June, all metropolitan divisions again registered over-the-year unemployment rate increases. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif., experienced the largest jobless rate increase (+2.2 percentage points). Sixteen other divisions had over the-year rate increases of 1.0 percentage point or more.
In 6 of the 11 metropolitan areas that contain divisions, the ranges between the highest and lowest division unemployment rates were 1.0 percentage point or more in June. Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Mass.-N.H., experienced the largest rate difference among its divisions, 3.7 percentage points (Lawrence-Methuen-Salem, Mass.-N.H., 7.6 percent, compared with Nashua, N.H.-Mass., 3.9 percent).
Metropolitan Area Nonfarm Employment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Among the 310 metropolitan areas for which nonfarm payroll data were available in June, 174 metropolitan areas reported over-the-year increases in employment, 127 reported decreases, and 9 had no change. The largest over-the-year employment increase was recorded in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas (+57,800), followed by Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas (+54,100), Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash. (+25,700), and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va. (+25,300). The largest over-the-year percentage gains in employment were reported in Grand Junction, Colo. (+4.4 percent), followed by Greenville, N.C., and Pascagoula, Miss. (+3.9 percent each), Rochester-Dover, N.H.-Maine (+3.6 percent), and Longview, Texas (+3.2 percent).
The largest over-the-year decrease in employment occurred in Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif. (-48,900), followed by Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich. (-34,800), Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz. (-25,900), and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif. (-25,800). The largest over-the-year percentage decreases in employment were reported in Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla. (-5.1 percent), followed by Flint, Mich. (-4.6 percent), Naples-Marco Island, Fla. (-4.2 percent), Elkhart-Goshen, Ind., and Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice, Fla. (-3.6 percent each).
Over-the-year, nonfarm employment rose in 22 of the 38 metropolitan areas with annual average employment levels above 750,000 in 2007. The largest over-the-year percentage increases in employment in these large metropolitan areas were posted in Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, N.C.-S.C., and Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas (+2.1 percent each), followed by Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas, and San Antonio, Texas (+2.0 percent each), and Austin-Round Rock, Texas (+1.8 percent). Among these large areas, 15 reported decreases in employment. The largest over-the year percentage decreases in employment in these areas were posted by Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif. (-2.0 percent), Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla. (-1.8 percent), Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich. (-1.7 percent), and Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz. (-1.4 percent).
Metropolitan Division Nonfarm Employment (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Nonfarm payroll employment data were available in June 2008 for 32 metropolitan divisions, which are essentially separately identifiable employment centers within a metropolitan area. Sixteen of the 32 metropolitan divisions reported over-the-year employment gains while 14 reported losses. The largest over-the-year increase in the metropolitan divisions occurred in Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas (+40,900), followed by Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va. (+23,700), New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J. (+22,700), and Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash. (+21,500). The largest over-the-year decrease in the metropolitan divisions occurred in Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, Calif. (-25,400), followed by Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale,Calif. (-23,500), Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, Calif. (-19,100), Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Mich. (-18,700), and Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Mich. (-16,100).
The largest over-the-year percentage increase in employment among the metropolitan divisions was reported in Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas (+2.0 percent), followed by Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas (+1.9 percent), Tacoma, Wash., and Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash. (+1.5 percent each). The largest over-the-year percentage decrease in employment among the metropolitan divisions was reported in Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Mich. (-2.4 percent), followed by Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, Calif. (-1.8 percent), Santa Ana- Anaheim-Irvine, Calif. (-1.7 percent), Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Mich. (-1.3 percent), and Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, Fla. (-1.2 percent).
