The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced on Thursday that the unemployment rate in Tennessee is currently at its lowest since August 2007. In fact, all 95 counties experienced a decline in their unemployment rate from January 2015 to January 2016. 

  • According to the release by the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Tennessee’s unemployment rate declined to 4.9% in February 2016, matching the nation’s unemployment rate for February.
     
  • Over the past year, Tennessee’s unemployment rate has declined by 1.1 percentage points, from 6.0% in February 2015 to 4.9% in February 2016. The nation’s unemployment rate has declined by 0.6 percentage points during this time period.
     
  • The report also shows a 3.66% growth in Tennessee’s private sector jobs from February 2015 to February 2016, an increase of 89,200 net new private sector jobs across the state.
     
  • From January 2015 through January 2016, Tennessee had the second largest percent increase in private sector jobs in the nation (3.84%), and the largest percent increase in the Southeast.
     
  • The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release February 2016 employment estimates for all states on Friday, March 25.
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