Department of Numbers

Lafayette, Louisiana Unemployment

The BLS reported that the unemployment rate for Lafayette fell 0.0 percentage points in March 2021 to 6.6%. For the same month, the metro unemployment rate was 0.7 percentage points lower than the Louisiana rate. The unemployment rate in Lafayette peaked in April 2020 at 13.9% and is now 7.3 percentage points lower. From a post peak low of 6.6% in December 2020, the unemployment rate has now grown by 0.0 percentage points. You can also compare Lafayette unemployment with unemployment in other cities.

Unemployment Rate March 2021 Month/Month Year/Year
National 6.0% -0.2 +1.6
Louisiana 7.3% -0.3 +2.0
Lafayette 6.6% 0.0 -0.5
Note: Metro level data is now seasonally adjusted.1 All comparisons are made with March 2021 data as April metro level unemployment data has not yet been released.

Unemployment Rate: Lafayette, Louisiana, National

Lafayette, Louisiana monthly unemployment rate chart

Note: Recessions shown in gray.

Lafayette, Louisiana Unemployed

The number of people unemployed in Lafayette peaked in April 2020 at 27,193. There are now 13,245 fewer people unemployed in the metropolitan area.

Unemployed Persons March 2021 Month/Month Year/Year
Lafayette 13,948 -170 -1,235

Number of Unemployed Persons

Lafayette, Louisiana Unemployment History

Date National
Unemployment Rate		 Louisiana
Unemployment Rate		 Lafayette
Unemployment Rate		 Lafayette
Unemployed
April
2021		 6.1% — — —
March
2021		 6.0% 7.3% 6.6% 13,948
February
2021		 6.2% 7.6% 6.6% 14,118
January
2021		 6.3% 7.6% 6.7% 14,085
December
2020		 6.7% 7.9% 6.6% 14,089
November
2020		 6.7% 7.9% 7.5% 16,056
October
2020		 6.9% 7.9% 8.1% 17,378
September
2020		 7.8% 8.0% 7.0% 14,914
August
2020		 8.4% 8.2% 6.9% 14,676
July
2020		 10.2% 9.1% 8.5% 17,496
June
2020		 11.1% 9.4% 8.6% 17,543
May
2020		 13.3% 13.1% 13.0% 26,844

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. ↩

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