ABJ - November 25 - Regional and state unemployment rates were generally little changed or slightly lower in October, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Thirty-six states and the District of Columbia recorded unemployment rate decreases, five states posted rate increases, and nine states had no rate change. Forty states registered unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier, eight states and the District of Columbia had increases, and two states experienced no change. The national jobless rate was little changed at nine per cent, but was 0.7 per cent lower than a year earlier.

In October, nonfarm payroll employment increased in 39 states and the District of Columbia and decreased in 11 states.

The largest increases in employment occurred in Illinois (30,000) and California (25,700). The largest decrease in employment occurred in Wisconsin (-9,700), followed by New York (-8,300) and Minnesota (-6,100). Delaware experienced the largest percentage increase in employment (one per cent), followed by North Dakota (0.7 per cent) and Oklahoma (0.6 per cent). Wisconsin experienced the largest percentage decline in employment (-0.4 per cent), followed by Maine, Rhode Island, and Wyoming (-0.3 per cent).

Over the year, nonfarm employment increased in 45 states and the District of Columbia. The largest percentage increase occurred in North Dakota (4.9 per cent), followed by Oklahoma (3.1 per cent) and Utah (2.6 per cent). The largest percentage decrease in employment was in Georgia (-0.9 per cent), followed by Indiana (-0.4 per cent).