The West continued to have the highest unemployment rate in the nation, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures released Tuesday.
In July, Oregon still had the highest unemployment rate, 8.1 percent. The two states with the next highest rates were likewise in the West, Alaska and Washington, at 7.9 and 7.5 percent, respectively. The West taken as a whole posted July unemployment of 6.5 percent.
Tallies generally were little changed from June.
From June to July, total nonfarm employment decreased in 28 states, increased in 21 states and the District of Columbia, and was unchanged in Delaware. The largest employment decreases occurred in Missouri (off 39,600), Oklahoma (off 28,600), Michigan (down 26,000), and California (off 21,800).
The Northeast recorded the lowest unemployment rate, 5.7 percent, followed by the Midwest and South, 5.8 percent each.
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