Asheville, North Carolina Unemployment
The BLS reported that the unemployment rate for Asheville fell 0.1 percentage points in December 2011 to 8.1%. For the same month, the metro unemployment rate was 1.8 percentage points lower than the North Carolina rate. The unemployment rate in Asheville peaked in December 2009 at 9.3% and is now 1.2 percentage points lower. From a post peak low of 7.7% in April 2011, the unemployment rate has now grown by 0.4 percentage points. You can also compare Asheville unemployment with unemployment in other cities.
| Unemployment Rate | December 2011 | Month/Month | Year/Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| National | 8.5% | -0.2 | -0.9 |
| North Carolina | 9.9% | -0.1 | +0.1 |
| Asheville | 8.1% | -0.1 | 0.0 |
Unemployment Rate: Asheville, North Carolina, National
Note: Recessions shown in gray.
Asheville, North Carolina Unemployed
The number of people unemployed in Asheville peaked in December 2009 at 19,268. There are now 2,581 fewer people unemployed in the metropolitan area. From a recent trough of 15,914 in April 2011, the number of unemployed has now grown by 773. Asheville employment and jobs data (including jobs lost/gained in Asheville, North Carolina) is also available.
| Unemployed Persons | December 2011 | Month/Month | Year/Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asheville | 16,687 | -205 | -133 |
Number of Unemployed Persons
Asheville, North Carolina Unemployment History
| Date |
National Unemployment Rate |
North Carolina Unemployment Rate |
Asheville Unemployment Rate |
Asheville Unemployed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
January 2012 |
8.3% | — | — | — |
|
December 2011 |
8.5% | 9.9% | 8.1% | 16,687 |
|
November 2011 |
8.7% | 10.0% | 8.2% | 16,892 |
|
October 2011 |
8.9% | 10.4% | 8.5% | 17,472 |
|
September 2011 |
9.0% | 10.5% | 8.5% | 17,557 |
|
August 2011 |
9.1% | 10.4% | 8.3% | 17,127 |
|
July 2011 |
9.1% | 10.1% | 8.0% | 16,555 |
|
June 2011 |
9.1% | 9.9% | 7.9% | 16,243 |
|
May 2011 |
9.0% | 9.7% | 7.7% | 15,928 |
|
April 2011 |
9.0% | 9.7% | 7.7% | 15,914 |
|
March 2011 |
8.9% | 9.7% | 7.8% | 16,040 |
|
February 2011 |
9.0% | 9.8% | 7.9% | 16,369 |
|
January 2011 |
9.1% | 9.8% | 8.1% | 16,695 |
1. Metro area unemployment rates are now seasonally adjusted. The BLS has started publishing smoothed seasonally adjusted metropolitan area data which makes comparisons to state and national data more relevant than the unadjusted numbers. ↩

