Unemployment Rates in Oregon Metros Rank in the Middle among U.S. Metros

by Christain Kaylor

April 6, 2022

Forty-nine metropolitan areas in the U.S. had jobless rates of less than 3% in January 2022, and three areas had rates of at least 10%. A total of 228 areas had January jobless rates below the U.S. rate of 4.4%, 151 areas had rates above it, and 10 areas had rates equal to that of the nation.

Looking at how Oregon compares nationally, Corvallis has a 3.3% rate which ranks 88th lowest among the 390 metropolitan areas. The Portland Metro unemployment rate of 4.4% is identical to the national unemployment rate. Three other Oregon areas had unemployment rates close to the national average, with Salem at 4.6%, Bend at 4.8%, and Eugene at 4.9%. Three Oregon areas had unemployment rates of 5.0% or more, with Medford at 5.0%, Albany at 5.1%, and Grants Pass at 6.1%.

At the low end of the spectrum nationally, lkhart-Goshen, Indiana, had the lowest unemployment rate, 1.6%, followed by Columbus, Indiana, at 1.9%. Among the areas with very low unemployment rates, a handful of states are disproportionately represented. Indiana has seven metro regions with unemployment rates of 2.6% or lower. Utah, Wisconsin, and Kansas all had multiple areas with unemployment rates of 2.7% or less.

Looking at areas with high unemployment rates, El Centro, California, had the highest rate with 15.6%, followed by Yuma, Arizona with 12.5% and then Ocean City, New Jersey with 10.7%. Among the areas with high unemployment rates, three states are at the top of the list. California has 11 areas with unemployment rates of 7.0% or higher. Pennsylvania and Washington both had multiple areas with unemployment rates above 6.0%.

To see the full list of unemployment rates for 390 metropolitan areas, go to www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/metro_03182022.htm.

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