(tn.gov/Peg Broadcasting News)
Tennessee started 2021 with a decrease in unemployment across the state. According to newly released data from the Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD), Tennessee recorded a jobless rate of 5.1% in January 2021.
The new seasonally adjusted rate represents a 0.5 of a percentage point drop from the December 2020 rate of 5.6%. The latest figure is just 1.4 percentage points higher than the statewide rate for January 2020, just months before the start of COVID-19’s impact on Tennessee’s economy.
Nationally, seasonally adjusted unemployment also decreased in January. The new rate of 6.3% is 0.4 of a percentage point lower than December’s revised rate of 6.7%. In a year-to-year comparison, the U.S. unemployment rate is 2.8 percentage points higher than it was in January 2020.