Unemployment rates in all 50 states and D.C. in May were lower than a year earlier, and unemployment rates in Virginia, Maryland and the District were all lower than the previous month.
Virginia, Maryland and D.C. continue to regain jobs lost to the pandemic.
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in D.C. in May was 7.2%, down from 7.5% in April and down from 8.9% in May of 2020.
Maryland’s May unemployment rate was 6.1%, down from 6.2% in April and 9.0% from a year earlier.
Virginia’s unemployment rate fell to 4.5%, down from 4.7% the previous month and 8.5% a year earlier.
The District had 22,300 more nonfarm payroll jobs in May than it did a year earlier, an annual job recovery rate of 3.1%.
Maryland ended May with 236,700 more jobs than a year earlier, or an annual job growth of 9.8%. Virginia has regained 255,300 jobs compared to May 2020, a job growth rate of 7.0%.
Hawaii had the highest state unemployment rate in May at 8.1%, followed by New Mexico at 8.0% and California at 7.9%.
The lowest state unemployment rate in May was New Hampshire at 2.5%, followed by Nebraska and Vermont at 2.6% each.
