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Neal Rodriguez

Neal Rodriguez

Posted March 31, 2009 | 04:00 PM (EST)

Five States with Unemployment Rates Under 5%


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Although Iowa has reached its highest unemployment rate in 17 years, its current rate is at 4.9 percent. Iowa's workforce dropped by 22,000; however, their rates are almost half that of the national average. Government Chet Culver pulled an Obama move and launched Recover.Iowa.gov; "This website is one tool to help Iowans learn about the benefit of this important program -- $1.9 billion from the Obama Recovery plan -- track the work underway to make the best use of these funds, and provide accountability and transparency about this important effort," said Culver.

Nebraska's unemployment rate dropped from 4.3 percent to 4.2 percent in February. Conclusively, the only state that had a drop in unemployment in February. Nebraska comprises one of 3 rural states that "had the fastest-rising wages for tech jobs."

North Dakota's state employment agency research analyst, Michael Ziesch states, "We've got plenty of jobs." USA Today reports that the state online job database posts 10,000 job vacancies. North Dakota's unemployment rate is at 4.3 percent. And it appears that many out-of-state job seekers are swarming the database, thinking out of the box, as I advised on last night's vlog.

Correction: I meant to say, 'Last thing you want to do is go to sleep on a full stomach;' I said, 'empty stomach' which caused me to have a nightmare where I was Phineas and Ferb ;)

Currently, 4,470 in Sioux Falls are out of a job; however, South Dakota makes the cut at 4.6 percent unemployment rate for the whole state. The South Dakota Department of Labor is now providing "customized employment and training" programs, funded by the additional stimulus funding.

Wyoming is also toted with paying the "fastest-rising wages for tech jobs," according to Businessweek. Wyoming is almost at full employment with a 3.9 percent unemployment rate. Senior citizens in Wyoming are holding back on retirement or taking part-time jobs. Nonetheless, high energy prices have helped Wyoming direct revenues towards reconstructing school infrastructure statewide. "Those projects have stretched into 2009 helping to keep people and their paychecks together. The surplus also safeguarded government positions, which make up 25 percent of Wyoming jobs," reports 9news.com.

For updates on the unemployment crisis, hit me on Twitter or find me on Lachamba.com to find ways around it.

Although Iowa has reached its highest unemployment rate in 17 years, its current rate is at 4.9 percent. Iowa's workforce dropped by 22,000; however, their rates are almost half that of the national a...
Although Iowa has reached its highest unemployment rate in 17 years, its current rate is at 4.9 percent. Iowa's workforce dropped by 22,000; however, their rates are almost half that of the national a...
 
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Overtone
See bio on the Aesop Institute website
06:24 PM on 04/03/2009
SMALL BUSINESS CAN CREATE MILLIONS OF ADDITIONAL NEW JOBS!

Up to 6 million jobs and 4 million small businesses can be created by A Human Investment Tax Credit Program. This was missing from the stimulus package.

One component, a jobs tax credit, became law for one year and generated more jobs in less time than any legislatio­n in our history.

Two versions of the 2009 Report can be downloaded free at: aesopinsti­tute.org

The full Report contains a post Keynesian, functional economic analysis.

The short version includes only what can be done, as well as an outline for Congress.

Please ask your Representa­tive and members of The House Ways and Means Committee to debate and launch this urgently needed Program without delay.
itolduso
lateral thinker
11:12 AM on 04/01/2009
Idaho's starting to look pretty good to me...in my little 'slice of heaven' unemployme­nt is over 11% & rising. Just today the U.S. Post Office announce the closure of a local mail processing center, 59 decent-pay­ing jobs eliminated­. What's worse, now all the mail will have to be trucked up to Tampa for processing­.... all local mail will have to journey to Tampa & back (100 miles, round-trip­) Talk about increasing your carbon footprint!­! It just doesn't make any sense, of course, most of what they do doesn't make sense. I thought our government was 'thinking green'- guess the P.O. didn't get the memo!
10:40 AM on 04/01/2009
North Dakota has a population of 633,000 and they still have job openings for 10,000 ?
Something doesn't seem right.
03:44 PM on 04/01/2009
Yeah there's something fishy about those numbers.
HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
WorkingClass
12:17 AM on 04/01/2009
I was born and raised in Iowa. My parents were from South Dakota. Most Americans know nothing at all about the region. When I lived in Boston and said I was from Iowa they would say Ohio. No Iowa. Ohio? Now I live in Louisiana and people think I'm from Idaho.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
sposton
right to tell what they don't want to hear
10:54 AM on 04/01/2009
Europeans often know more about America than Americans.
11:56 PM on 03/31/2009
Iowa, Nebraska, the Dakotas and Wyoming, who the hell wants to live there? Almost as bad as Wisconsin(­but more rednecks). Most young people leave these states as soon as they get their college diplomas, others get blown up in meth labs.
This user has chosen to opt out of the Badges program
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04:01 AM on 04/01/2009
That may be true now, but just wait until their relatively vibrant economies start attracting cosmopolit­ans from other states. Demographi­cs shift during hard times when people from depressed areas start seeking their fortunes elsewhere.
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ImmanuelGoldstein
Founder of the "Brotherhood"
09:09 AM on 04/02/2009
The problem is that these states have such tiny population­s that there is no way they can absorb that many unemployed­.
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SteveDenver
Progressive and liberal, just like Jesus Christ.
10:24 PM on 03/31/2009
It's amazing that the minority population­s in these states are exactly the same as the unemployme­nt rates.
09:34 PM on 03/31/2009
These states have miniscule population­s. If you are gay, you go their at peril of your life. N Dakota keeps passing ridiculous total abortion bans. Get real. Like these states could absorb millions of unemployed­.
08:29 PM on 03/31/2009
Let me guess. Nobody wants to live in Iowa, Nebraska or North Dakota.
HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
doneflyin
my micro-bio isn't
11:36 PM on 03/31/2009
Pretty much.
06:14 PM on 03/31/2009
Let me guess... in these states most people either work on the farm or in a job supporting farming one way or another?