Unemployment rates – Hiring sign on window — Courtesy: Shutterstock — Image by: rblfmr
According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Florida is home to four of the five major metropolitan regions with the lowest unemployment rates.
Four of the top five metro areas in terms of lowest unemployment rate were in the Sunshine State, and all five were in the southern United States, according to the BLS’ assessments of large metropolitan statistical areas, which the agency defines as having at least 1 million persons as of the 2010 census.
With a preliminary unemployment rate of 2.2 percent in February, the Miami metropolitan region, which includes Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, was tied for first place. The metropolitan area of Birmingham and Hoover, Alabama, also had a 2.2 percent unemployment rate. Both are significantly lower than the 3.5 percent national unemployment rate as of March.
The metro areas of Jacksonville and Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater tied for third place with an unemployment rate of 2.5 percent apiece in February.
With a 2.6 percent unemployment rate, the Orlando, Kissimmee, and Sanford metropolitan statistical regions equaled Salt Lake City, Utah, for fifth place.
According to the preliminary BLS data, metro areas with unemployment rates below 3 percent in February completed the top 10. These included:
The metro area of Milwaukee, Waukesha, and West Allis in Wisconsin placed seventh with a 2.7 percent unemployment rate.
With an unemployment rate of 2.8 percent, the metropolitan regions of Nashville, Davidson, Murfreesboro, and Franklin in Tennessee and St. Louis, Missouri, and its suburbs in Illinois tied for eighth place.
Four metropolitan areas—Kansas City, Missouri; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Phoenix, Mesa, and Scottsdale, Arizona; and the Washington, Arlington, and Alexandria metro area, which includes the District of Columbia and a portion of each of Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia—were tied for tenth place with an unemployment rate of 2.9 percent.
An inflow of new citizens who have come to the state in the last year has fueled Florida’s economic boom.
For the first time since 1957, according to Census Bureau data released in December, Florida was the state with the greatest population growth in the nation. Between 2021 and 2022, Florida’s population increased by 416,754 people, or 1.9 percent, totaling more than 22.2 million people.
A representative for Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis told FOX Business that the governor’s initiatives are to blame for the state’s expanding economy and population:
“The governor has certainly championed many successful economic policies that have contributed to this success. But the governor also embodies the right attitude in a leader to foster economic prosperity. As the governor noted today, for economic success in a state: ‘You don’t need an income tax; you don’t need to [over] tax people. You just need to have a good [business] environment, be a free state, and allow people to do their thing. And that’s pretty much what we’ve done.’”
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Melissa’s career in writing started more than 20 years ago. Today, she lives in South Florida with her husband and two boys.
