Alabama’s labor force participation rate for December increased to 57.2%, according to Alabama Department of Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington.
Alabama’s labor force participation rate for November was 57.1%.
The percentage of prime-age workers increased by four-tenths of a percentage point to 78.5% over the year. Prime-age workers are those aged 25-54 years.
“As we continue to see growth in our labor force participation rate, with our prime-age worker participation rate increasing by nearly a half of a percentage point over the year, we will continue our efforts to reach more of underutilized workforce populations,” Washington said. “We know that the labor force participation rate for the state is tied to its demographic population, so we must work together to encourage those who traditionally may not be heavily recruited by employers to work with us to get them in the workforce.”
Alabama’s preliminary, seasonally adjusted December unemployment rate is 2.6%, up slightly from November’s rate of 2.4%. December’s rate is equal to December 2022’s rate of 2.6%. The rate represents 59,454 unemployed persons, compared to 55,462 in November and 59,986 in December 2022.
The number of people counted as employed increased by 40,194 over the year to a record high of 2,264,098. The civilian labor force also increased to a new record high of 2,323,552, with 39,662 more people joining over the year.
Counties with the lowest unemployment rates are Shelby County at 1.9%; Morgan, Marshall, and Cullman Counties at 2.1%; and Madison, Limestone, Elmore, Chilton, and Autauga Counties at 2.2%. Counties with the highest unemployment rates are Wilcox County at 9.3%, Greene County at 6.3%, and Dallas County at 5.8%.
Major cities with the lowest unemployment rates are Vestavia Hills at 1.7%; Alabaster, Homewood, and Madison at 1.8%; and Hoover, Northport, and Trussville at 1.9%. Major cities with the highest unemployment rates are Selma at 7.2%, Prichard at 5.5%, and Bessemer at 4.3%.
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