Unemployment rates are rising across U.S. metropolitan areas, provoking alarm across the nation and likely leading to interest rate cuts in September.
As of July, unemployment rates increased in 350 out of 389 U.S. metros areas—including 47 of the 51 largest metros, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Rhode Island, using BLS data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in July 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
The national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 4.3%. Still, it’s up substantially from 3.5% during the same month last year and has climbed to the highest rate since November 2021. By comparison, unemployment rates surged to 10% in October 2009 during the Great Recession, and a full recovery took years. At the height of the brief COVID-19 recession in April 2020, unemployment hit 14.7%.
The Federal Reserve has shifted its focus from curbing inflation to unemployment, indicating plans to cut interest rates in the coming weeks and months to alleviate economic strain and avoid further job losses.
Since last year, unemployment has spiked in over half of states—a signal often indicating a looming recession, as Piper Sandler Chief Global Economist Nancy Lazar told Business Insider. These jobless rates, paired with layoffs among major U.S. employers like Google and Tesla, have sparked concern among Americans. Minus a major economic blow, economists continue to forecast that the U.S. is tracking toward an incremental slowdown in growth known as a “soft landing.”
To get a better idea of your community’s current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Rhode Island.
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#5. Newport County
– July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 46,933 people (1,880 unemployed)
Pernelle Voyage // Shutterstock
#4. Washington County
– July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.9 percentage points
– Total labor force: 74,174 people (2,984 unemployed)
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#3. Bristol County
– July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
— 1-month change: Up 0.8 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 27,767 people (1,216 unemployed)
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#2. Kent County
– July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
— 1-month change: Up 0.7 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 98,030 people (4,583 unemployed)
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#1. Providence County
– July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
— 1-month change: Up 1.0 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 3.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 351,991 people (20,264 unemployed)
This story features data reporting and writing by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
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