Kentucky’s unemployment rate continues to drop. The seasonally adjusted preliminary March 2015 unemployment rate dipped to 5.1 percent, the lowest rate since June 2001 when it was 5 percent.
Kentucky’s figure is below the national rate for the eighth month in a row, according to the Office of Employment and Training, an agency of the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet.
“The last time the levels dipped to the 5.1 percent range was in June 2001. To put that in perspective, it’s about the time the first ‘Shrek’ movie hit the box office, and cell phones didn’t have cameras.”
— Economist Manoj Shanker, Office of Employment and Training
The state rate fell from the revised February 2015 rate of 5.3 percent and was 2.1 percentage points below the 7.2 percent recorded in March 2014.
The U.S. seasonally adjusted jobless rate of 5.5 percent for March 2015 was unchanged from the February 2015 rate, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Labor force statistics, including the unemployment rate, are based on estimates from the Current Population Survey of households. It is designed to measure trends rather than to count the actual number of people working. It includes jobs in agriculture and those classified as self-employed.
In March 2015, Kentucky’s civilian labor force was 1,993,171, an increase of 5,043 individuals compared to the previous month. Employment was up by 7,353, and the number of unemployed decreased by 2,310.
Civilian labor force statistics include nonmilitary 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.
Kentucky’s statewide unemployment rate and employment levels are seasonally adjusted. Employment statistics undergo sharp fluctuations due to seasonal events, such as weather changes, harvests, holidays and school openings and closings. Seasonal adjustments eliminate these influences and make it easier to observe statistical trends. However, because of the small sample size, county unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
From Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet