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Unemployment rates up in 40 states and D.C. from March 2020 to March 2021
April 22, 2021
From March 2020 to March 2021, unemployment rates increased in 40 states and the District of Columbia, and were essentially unchanged in 10 states. The national unemployment rate of 6.0 percent was 1.6 percentage points higher than in March 2020.
Change in unemployment rates for states from March 2020 to March 2021
State
March 2020 unemployment rate
March 2021 unemployment rate
12-month change
Alabama
2.6%
3.8%
1.2 percentage point(s)
Alaska
5.1
6.6
1.5
Arizona
5.0
6.7
1.7
Arkansas
3.9
4.4
0.5
California
4.5
8.3
3.8
Colorado
4.7
6.4
1.7
Connecticut
3.8
8.3
4.5
Delaware
4.8
6.5
1.7
District of Columbia
5.2
7.8
2.6
Florida
4.9
4.7
-0.2
Georgia
3.6
4.5
0.9
Hawaii
2.1
9.0
6.9
Idaho
2.7
3.2
0.5
Illinois
3.7
7.1
3.4
Indiana
3.3
3.9
0.6
Iowa
2.9
3.7
0.8
Kansas
3.2
3.7
0.5
Kentucky
4.2
5.0
0.8
Louisiana
5.3
7.3
2.0
Maine
3.1
4.8
1.7
Maryland
3.5
6.2
2.7
Massachusetts
2.7
6.8
4.1
Michigan
3.7
5.1
1.4
Minnesota
3.5
4.2
0.7
Mississippi
6.0
6.3
0.3
Missouri
3.7
4.2
0.5
Montana
3.8
3.8
0.0
Nebraska
3.1
2.9
-0.2
Nevada
6.4
8.1
1.7
New Hampshire
2.7
3.0
0.3
New Jersey
3.8
7.7
3.9
New Mexico
5.4
8.3
2.9
New York
3.9
8.5
4.6
North Carolina
3.9
5.2
1.3
North Dakota
2.3
4.4
2.1
Ohio
4.9
4.7
-0.2
Oklahoma
3.2
4.2
1.0
Oregon
3.6
6.0
2.4
Pennsylvania
5.1
7.3
2.2
Rhode Island
4.0
7.1
3.1
South Carolina
3.0
5.1
2.1
South Dakota
2.9
2.9
0.0
Tennessee
4.0
5.0
1.0
Texas
4.9
6.9
2.0
Utah
2.5
2.9
0.4
Vermont
2.6
2.9
0.3
Virginia
2.6
5.1
2.5
Washington
5.3
5.4
0.1
West Virginia
5.3
5.9
0.6
Wisconsin
3.2
3.8
0.6
Wyoming
5.1
5.3
0.2
The largest unemployment rate increases from March 2020 occurred in Hawaii (+6.9 percentage points), New York (+4.6 percentage points), and Connecticut (+4.5 points), with another five states experiencing unemployment rate increases of at least 3.0 points.
Hawaii and New York had the highest unemployment rates in March 2021, at 9.0 percent and 8.5 percent, respectively. Nebraska, South Dakota, Utah, and Vermont had the lowest rates, at 2.9 percent each. In total, 27 states had unemployment rates lower than the U.S. rate of 6.0 percent, 11 states and the District of Columbia had higher rates, and 12 states had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation.
United States Department of Labor
