Alabama unemployment measures 6.3 percent

Friday, September 20, 2013

By PHILLIP RAWLS

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Alabama's unemployment rate measured 6.3 percent for August.

The state Department of Labor says the rate is up from July's revised figure of 6.2 percent, but it is well below the 7.5 percent rate from July 2012. It is also below the national rate of 7.3 percent.

The new figures show the number of unemployed Alabamians stayed about the same from July to August, but the number of people employed and the size of the labor force declined.

The Department of Labor said the counties with the lowest unemployment were Shelby at 4.5 percent, Lee at 5.5 percent, and Cullman and Baldwin tied at 5.6 percent. Counties with the highest rates were Wilcox at 16.0 percent, Dallas at 14.1 percent, and Perry at 14.0 percent.