Alabama’s Unemployment Rate Drops to 4.5%

MONTGOMERY – Governor Kay Ivey announced today that Alabama’s preliminary, seasonally adjusted July unemployment rate is 4.5%, down from June’s rate of 4.6%, and well below July 2016’s rate of 5.8%.  July’s rate represents 96,251 unemployed persons, compared to 100,187 in June and 126,182 in July 2016.
“This month, there are fewer people unemployed than there have been in nearly 10 years. This is most welcome news.  But even as our unemployment rate continues to decline, we must maintain our work to bring quality, high-paying, high-demand jobs to the state of Alabama. This is a goal I’m committed to, and I intend to continue doing just that,” Governor Ivey said.
The number of people counted as unemployed is down 29,931 from July 2016. The last time this measurement was at or below July’s level was in November 2007, when it measured 95,445.
“In addition to this being the lowest unemployment rate Alabama has seen since January 2008, we also continue to see yearly growth in many of Alabama’s industries, including manufacturing and construction,” Secretary of Labor Fitzgerald Washington said. “Upticks in manufacturing and construction jobs are indicative of positive economic growth.”
Over the year, wage and salary employment increased 31,300, with gains in the leisure and hospitality sector (+12,500), the professional and business services sector (+7,200), the manufacturing sector (+6,700), and the construction sector (+4,900), among others.
Counties with the lowest unemployment rates are: Shelby County at 3.5%, Cullman and Baldwin Counties at 4.0%, and Marshall and Elmore Counties at 4.1%.  Counties with the highest unemployment rates are: Wilcox County at 13.5%, Perry County at 10.8%, and Clarke County at 10.2%.
Major cities with the lowest unemployment rates are: Vestavia Hills at 2.9%, Homewood and Hoover at 3.3%, and Alabaster at 3.4%.  Major cities with the highest unemployment rates are: Selma at 10.9%, Prichard at 9.7%, and Anniston at 6.5%.
July 2017 City Rates
July 2017 County Rates
July 2017 County Map
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Members of the media seeking more information should contact Communications Director Tara Hutchison at (334) 242-8616.
“Seasonal adjustment” refers to BLS’s practice of anticipating certain trends in the labor force, such as hiring during the holidays or the surge in the labor force when students graduate in the spring, and removing their effects to the civilian labor force.
The Current Population (CPS), or the household survey, is conducted by the Census Bureau and identifies members of the work force and measures how many people are working or looking for work.
The establishment survey, which is conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a division of the U.S. Department of Labor, surveys employers to measure how many jobs are in the economy.  This is also referred to as wage and salary employment.