PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island had the second-highest unemployment rate in New England at 5.8% in July, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.
The United States unemployment rate was 5.4% in July, a 0.5 percentage point decline from June and a drop from 10.2% in July 2020.
Nationally, Nevada had the highest unemployment rate in July at 7.7%, followed by California, New Mexico and New York at 7.6%, the BLS said. Nebraska and Utah had the lowest unemployment rates in the nation at 2.3% and 2.6%, respectively.
Year over year, Rhode Island had the second-largest percentage point decline (8.2 percentage points) in unemployment rate in the nation behind Nevada (8.9 percentage points). Month to month, Connecticut, Hawaii and Oregon had the highest declines, each at 0.4 percentage points.
Despite the high rates of decline in Rhode Island and Connecticut, they remained as the two highest unemployment rates in New England. Also, the labor force of New England states dropped year over year in all states but Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
- Connecticut: 7.3%, a decline from 7.7% in June and 11.3% in July 2020.
- Rhode Island: 5.8%, a decline from 5.9% in June and 14% one year prior.
- Maine: 4.9%, a rise from 4.8% in June and a decline from 8.8% in July 2020.
- Massachusetts: 4.9%, level with one month prior and a decline from 9.8% one year prior.
- New Hampshire: 2.9%, level with June and a decline from 8.1% in July 2020.
- Vermont: 3%, a decline from 3.1% in June and 6.4% one year prior.
