New Orleans-Metairie, Louisiana Unemployment
The BLS reported that the unemployment rate for New Orleans fell 1.5 percentage points in July 2021 to 7.1%. For the same month, the metro unemployment rate was 0.5 percentage points higher than the Louisiana rate. The unemployment rate in New Orleans peaked in April 2020 at 17.2% and is now 10.1 percentage points lower. You can also compare New Orleans unemployment with unemployment in other cities.
| Unemployment Rate | July 2021 | Month/Month | Year/Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| National | 5.4% | -0.5 | -4.8 |
| Louisiana | 6.6% | -0.3 | -2.5 |
| New Orleans | 7.1% | -1.5 | -4.4 |
Unemployment Rate: New Orleans, Louisiana, National
Note: Recessions shown in gray.
New Orleans, Louisiana Unemployed
The number of people unemployed in New Orleans peaked in April 2020 at 100,676. There are now 59,206 fewer people unemployed in the metropolitan area. New Orleans employment and jobs data (including jobs lost/gained in New Orleans, Louisiana) is also available.
| Unemployed Persons | July 2021 | Month/Month | Year/Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Orleans | 41,470 | -9,308 | -22,541 |
Number of Unemployed Persons
New Orleans, Louisiana Unemployment History
| Date | National Unemployment Rate |
Louisiana Unemployment Rate |
New Orleans Unemployment Rate |
New Orleans Unemployed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2021 |
5.2% | — | — | — |
| July 2021 |
5.4% | 6.6% | 7.1% | 41,470 |
| June 2021 |
5.9% | 6.9% | 8.6% | 50,778 |
| May 2021 |
5.8% | 7.1% | 8.7% | 51,361 |
| April 2021 |
6.1% | 7.2% | 8.8% | 51,838 |
| March 2021 |
6.0% | 7.4% | 8.0% | 46,661 |
| February 2021 |
6.2% | 7.6% | 9.2% | 54,026 |
| January 2021 |
6.3% | 7.6% | 9.5% | 55,902 |
| December 2020 |
6.7% | 7.9% | 8.4% | 49,560 |
| November 2020 |
6.7% | 7.9% | 8.7% | 51,370 |
| October 2020 |
6.9% | 7.9% | 9.0% | 53,405 |
| September 2020 |
7.8% | 8.0% | 9.3% | 55,345 |
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. ↩
Department of Numbers
The Department of Numbers contextualizes public data so that individuals can form independent opinions on everyday social and economic matters.
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