Alabama is at full employment, and businesses and governments are struggling to fill vacancies. Unemployment remains at its all-time record low, while state officials remain perplexed that the labor participation rate continues to trail the rest of the nation.
On Friday, Alabama Department of Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington announced that Alabama’s Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) rose only slightly in August to 57.0%. This is up from last August’s rate of 56.9%.
The “prime-age” participation rate, which measures the labor force participation rate for individuals aged 25-54, remains at 77.8% in Alabama. The regular labor force participation rate measures individuals aged 16 and up.
Washington also announced that Alabama’s preliminary, seasonally adjusted August unemployment rate held steady at its record low of 2.1%. August’s rate is well below August 2022’s rate of 2.6%. The August 2023 rate represents just 48,605 unemployed persons, a new record low, compared to 48,789 in July and 60,200 in August 2022.
The number of people counted as employed increased by 32,631 over the year to a new all-time record high of 2,259,025. The civilian labor force also reached a new record high of 2,307,630, with 21,036 more people joining the labor force over the year.
“Yet again, we are announcing record-breaking economic statistics this month,” said Secretary Washington. “While our labor force participation rate remained unchanged, we are continuing to work with marginalized groups to get them into our labor force.”
“Despite having one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country and a record number of Alabamians working, the percentage of Alabamians participating in the labor force is lower than almost any other state,” Governor Kay Ivey wrote recently. “While we are increasing that by the tens of thousands, we have to change this statistic. Getting folks off the sidelines and into the labor force is my next priority.”
Over the year, wage and salary employment increased by 38,100 to 2,149,800, with gains in the leisure and hospitality sector (+4,900), the private education and health services sector (+7,100), the government sector (+5,900), the trade, transportation, and utilities sector (+8,100), and the professional and business services sector (+6,000), among others.
Over the month, wage and salary employment increased by 1,900 to 2,149,800, with gains in the government sector (+2,800), the professional and business services sector (+2,400), and the private education and health services sector (+2,100), among others.
The counties with the lowest unemployment rates are Shelby County at 1.8%, Morgan, Marshall, Madison, and Cullman Counties at 2.0%, and St. Clair, Limestone, Elmore, and Blount Counties at 2.1%. The counties with the highest unemployment rates are Wilcox County at 7.3%, Dallas County at 5.5%, and Perry County at 5.0%.
The major Alabama cities with the lowest unemployment rates are Vestavia Hills at 1.6%, Alabaster, Homewood, Madison, and Trussville at 1.7%, and Hoover at 1.8%. The major cities with the highest unemployment rates are Selma at 6.5%, Prichard at 4.9%, and Bessemer at 4.0%.
The establishment survey, conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), a division of the U.S. Department of Labor, surveys employers to measure how many jobs are in the economy. This is also referred to as wage and salary employment.
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