February Unemployment Rate 8.0 Percent
Thursday, March 22, 2012 | 08:16am
State Unemployment Rate Drops for Seventh Consecutive Month
NASHVILLE – Tennessee Commissioner of Labor & Workforce Development Karla Davis announced today Tennessee’s unemployment rate for February fell to 8.0 percent, down from the January revised rate of 8.2 percent. The national unemployment rate for February 2012 was 8.3 percent, unchanged from the January rate.
“The state experienced a net increase of approximately 4,800 jobs in February,” Commissioner Davis said. “While it is a small change in the job picture, Tennessee’s unemployment rate is the lowest since November 2008.”
UT Economist Bill Fox added, “The business survey data shows strong year-over-year growth with an increase of more than 50,000 jobs. The monthly data also show reasonable increases in healthcare, durable manufacturing, and temporary employment agencies.”
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Seasonally Adjusted Nonfarm Employment
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|
||||
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(numbers in thousands)
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Feb 2011
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Jan 2012
|
Feb 2012
|
Annual Change
Feb 2011 to 2012 |
Monthly Change
Jan 2012 to Feb 2012 |
|
Total Nonfarm
|
2,642.1
|
2,687.4
|
2,692.2
|
50.1
|
4.8
|
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Mining/logging/construction
|
106.0
|
115.8
|
114.4
|
8.4
|
-1.4
|
|
Manufacturing
|
303.0
|
307.2
|
307.7
|
4.7
|
0.5
|
|
Trade/transportation/utilities
|
558.4
|
558.3
|
558.8
|
0.4
|
0.5
|
|
Information
|
44.1
|
44.6
|
44.8
|
0.7
|
0.2
|
|
Financial activities
|
135.4
|
136.5
|
136.0
|
0.6
|
-0.5
|
|
Professional/business services
|
315.4
|
331.10
|
332.2
|
16.8
|
1.2
|
|
Education/health services
|
381.2
|
387.0
|
389.3
|
8.1
|
2.3
|
|
Leisure/hospitality
|
265.1
|
266.9
|
267.4
|
2.3
|
0.5
|
|
Other services
|
101.8
|
102.0
|
101.6
|
-0.2
|
-0.4
|
|
Government
|
431.7
|
438.1
|
440.0
|
8.3
|
1.9
|
The state unemployment rate is seasonally adjusted while the county unemployment rates are not. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical technique that eliminates the influences of weather, holidays, the opening and closing of schools, and other recurring seasonal events from economic time series. This permits easier observation and analysis of cyclical, trend, and other nonseasonal movements in the data. By eliminating seasonal fluctuations, the series becomes smoother and the data are easier to compare from month to month.
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