Governor Kay Ivey announced on Friday that Alabama's unemployment rate had held steady at its record low of 2.6% for the month of July.
July's unemployment rate is well below its 2021 counterpart rate of 3.4%. Per the announcement, the rate represents 59,419 unemployed persons, a new record low, compared to 60,307 in June and 77,076 in July 2021.
Ivey touted the latest report as "one of the best numbers" with "more people working than ever before."
“Alabama’s historically low unemployment rate keeps holding strong, all while we continue breaking other new records," Ivey said. "Today, I consider one of the best numbers to be that we, once again, have more people working than ever before. We will not relent on our efforts. We will continue working hard to support businesses as they seek more employees while also connecting folks in our workforce with existing resources to ensure they are highly skilled and well-equipped.”
The Yellowhammer State's civilian labor force, people who are either working or looking for work, also reached its highest ever level at 2,291,962, according to the announcement. That number is up 65,475 from the previous year.
Alabama Department of Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington lauded the jobs report, saying people were "working in Alabama in record numbers."
“Alabama’s record-low unemployment rate is continuing to hold steady, and we are continuing to see other record-breaking employment statistics, month after month,” Washington said. “People are working in Alabama in record numbers, and employers are adding jobs in nearly all major industry sectors, gaining more than 34,000 jobs since last year. Wages are increasing in Alabama as well. We’re seeing the second highest weekly wage rate in history, an increase of nearly $28 per week.”
Highlights from Alabama's July jobs report are as follows:
Counties with the lowest unemployment rates: Shelby County at 2.1%, Marshall and Cullman Counties at 2.4%, and St. Clair, Limestone, Clay, and Blount Counties at 2.5%.
Counties with the highest unemployment rates: Wilcox County at 11.3%, Perry County at 8.3% and Lowndes County at 8.1%.
Major cities with the lowest unemployment rates: Trussville and Vestavia Hills at 1.9%, Homewood at 2.0%, and Alabaster and Madison at 2.1%.
Major cities with the highest unemployment rates: Selma at 9.4%, Prichard at 7.5% and Bessemer at 4.9%.
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