12 states are at record low unemployment even as Omicron slowed down the hiring recovery

A person with an umbrella walks by a McDonald's restaurant that has a ''Now Hiring" sign above the entrance. — A ''Now Hiring" sign hangs above the entrance to a McDonald's restaurant on November 05, 2021 in Miami Beach, Florida.
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Twelve states saw unemployment drop to their lowest rates since data was first tracked in 1976.
Among those 12 states is Nebraska, which also had the lowest rate in December among the states and DC.
This map shows what unemployment rates looked like across the US as of the end of last year.

For several states, there was some good news on the hiring front amid the ongoing pandemic and cases of the Omicron variant.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics wrote in its latest State Employment and Unemployment Summary release that unemployment rates in 12 states reached record lows since this data was first tracked in 1976.

Unemployment rates vary from 1.7% in Nebraska to 6.5% in California. Like California, Nevada, New Jersey, and New York all had rates above 6.0% in December.

The following map highlights what the unemployment rate looked like across the US in December 2021 using seasonally adjusted data. States with an asterisk had rates at a record low since data was first tracked in 1976.

Utah was at a low of 1.9% in December 2021, making this state also the second-lowest rate among states and DC that month.

"The state's unemployment rate is now below 2.0% for the first time ever," Mark Knold, chief economist at the Utah Department of Workforce Services said about this latest data according to a summary of the state's latest numbers. "This is uncharted territory in terms of such a low unemployment rate and gauging how much lower it can conceivably go."

Additionally, Nebraska is one of the 12 states noted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that has notably reached a new low at the end of 2021.

"Nebraska's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate continues to drop, reaching another historical low in December," John H. Albin, Nebraska commissioner of labor, said about the latest rate. "December 2021 marks the fifth straight month that Nebraska has had a historically low unemployment rate."

The governors of Idaho and Montana also commented on these new low rates in their respective states.

"With lower taxes and responsible, responsive government, our economy is going again, we're open for business, and Montanans are back to work," Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte said.

Idaho Gov. Brad Little said the state's "economy is booming and people are working at historic rates, proving that the conservative principles of cutting taxes, slashing regulations, and making investments where they matter most lead to opportunity and prosperity for the people."

Overall US unemployment rate is at a pandemic low but still not at the pre-pandemic rate

Despite these record rates in 12 states, Americans across the country are still looking for jobs while others reevaluate their positions and quit. Overall, the national rate this past December dropped 0.3 percentage points to 3.9%. Despite this drop, it's still above the pre-pandemic rate of 3.5% but quickly making its way back down.

Things like issues with childcare, burnout, and health concerns are impacting some Americans' ability to work. Some businesses are experiencing staffing shortages and are finding it hard to attract or even retain workers. Some have increased wages as workers quit for better paying positions.

Although December was the lowest unemployment rate for the nation during the pandemic so far, there are still 6.3 million people unemployed. The share of unemployed people who have been unemployed for at least 27 weeks, or who could be considered long-term unemployed, did decline in December from 32.5% to 31.7%.

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