With its latest monthly jobs report, the Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet is reporting that unemployment rates rose in 119 of the state’s 120 counties between July 2023 and July 2024. Lee County was the only county where unemployment rates fell according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS), which is an agency within the Education and Labor Cabinet.
Kentucky’s current 5.3 percent unemployment rate is nearly a full percentage point above the U.S. comparable rate of 4.5 percent. In July of 2023, the state’s unemployment rate stood at 4.6 percent.
When comparing July’s unemployment rate numbers to the previous month’s data, Whitley County and all of its neighboring counties saw a slight uptick in unemployment. Whitley County recorded a 6.3 unemployment rate in June, and a rate of 6.5 percent in July.
Surrounding counties include:
• Bell County – 6.7 percent (up from 6.6 in June)
• Knox County – 8.2 percent (up from 7.9 in June)
• Laurel County – 5.8 percent (up from 5.7 in June)
• McCreary County – 7.4 percent (up from 7.1 in June)
Whitley County recorded a civilian labor force of 13,819 people in the most recent jobs report, with 12,917 of those being employed. Knox County showed a civilian labor force of 9,963 with 9,148 employed and Laurel County showed a labor force of 24,855 with 23,410 being employed.
Statewide, a civilian labor force of 2,068,343 people was recorded for the month of July with 1,957,783 of those being employed.
Cumberland County recorded the lowest jobless rate in the state for July at 3.8 percent, while Magoffin County recorded the state’s highest unemployment rate at 11.3 percent.
Kentucky’s county unemployment rates and unemployment levels are not seasonally adjusted because of small sample sizes. Unemployment statistics are based on estimates and are compiled to measure trends rather than actually to count people working. Civilian labor force statistics include non-military workers and unemployed Kentuckians who are actively seeking work. They do not include unemployed Kentuckians who have not looked for employment within the past four weeks.
Additional information concerning state labor statistics can be found online at www.kystats.ky.gov.
