March 2013 County Unemployment Rates

RATES DECREASE IN MAJORITY OF TENNESSEE COUNTIES

NASHVILLE – County unemployment rates for March 2013, released today, show the rate decreased in 58 counties, increased in 24, and stayed the same in 13. Specific county information is available on the Internet; enter http://www.tn.gov/labor-wfd/labor_figures/LaborMarch13.pdf.

Knox County had the state’s lowest major metropolitan rate of 6.2 percent, down from 6.4 percent in February. Davidson County rate of 6.3 percent was unchanged from February.  Hamilton County was 7.7 percent, up from 7.6 percent in the previous month. Shelby County was 9.5 percent, up from 9.3 percent in February.

Tennessee’s unemployment rate for March was 7.9 percent, which increased one tenth of one percentage point from the February revised rate of 7.8 percent. The national unemployment rate for March 2013 was 7.6 percent, decreasing by one tenth of one percentage point from the previous month.

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.

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