Tennessee unemployment rate drops 0.1 percentage points

Friday, December 21, 2018, Vol. 42, No. 51

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam says the state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has dropped by 0.1 percentage points in November to 3.6 percent.

A news release from the term-limited governor says employers added 3,400 nonfarm jobs between October and November. It says the biggest jumps were in retail; transportation and warehousing and utilities; and the accommodation and food services sectors. In the last year, Tennessee has added 60,700 nonfarm jobs.

Tennessee's 3.6 percent unemployment rate in November rose from 3.3 percent in November 2017, while the national unemployment rate decreased from 4.1 percent to 3.7 percent. Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Burns Phillips says the 3.3 percent last year was the state's all-time lowest jobless rate.