Upper Midwestern States Bearing the Brunt of Rising Unemployment

Although the majority of Upper Midwestern states are currently experiencing some of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, the rate of increase, particularly during the last four months, has hit this region of the country particularly hard.

Overall, three of the five states with the lowest unemployment rates in the country are located in the Upper Midwest, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistic’s preliminary seasonally adjusted unemployment numbers for the month of February: Iowa (#46, 4.9 percent), South Dakota (#47, 4.6 percent), and North Dakota (#48, 4.3 percent). The region’s other states, Minnesota (8.1 percent) and Wisconsin (7.7 percent), also rank outside the Top 15 in the country (at #20 and #25 respectively).

While Michigan (#1, 12.0 percent) and California (#5, 10.5 percent) have perhaps received the most press for their economic woes and double-digit unemployment numbers, neither state is enduring the rate of increase currently being experienced in the Upper Midwest. (In fact, neither state ranks in the Top 25).

A Smart Politics analysis finds that since November 2008, four of the Upper Midwest’s five states rank among the Top 15 in the nation for the largest rate of increase in unemployment claims.

· Wisconsin has fared the worst, with its unemployment rate jumping 42.6 percent since November – the third highest in the country – behind only Virginia (43.5 percent) and North Carolina (42.7 percent). That rate is 54.7 percent higher than the national average (27.6 percent). These sobering numbers might help to explain the Badger State’s recent rising dissatisfaction with President Barack Obama, Senators Herb Kohl and Russ Feingold, and Governor Jim Doyle.

· South Dakota (35.3 percent) and North Dakota (34.4 percent), despite having two of the lowest jobless rates in the nation, are enduring the 8th and 9th highest rate increases since November. Smart Politics recently documented record unemployment trends in both South and North Dakota.

· Minnesota’s recent record unemployment jump has landed them with a 32.8 percent rise in jobless claims since November 2008, the 14th highest in the nation.

· Only Iowa (14.0 percent) has been spared in the region, coming in with the second lowest rate of increase in unemployment among the 50 states since Election Day.

After adding Indiana (#10, 34.3 percent) and Ohio (#16, 32.4 percent) into the mix, it is evident that the national economic crisis is hitting the overall Midwest region particularly hard – not just the state of Michigan.

Other regions are, comparatively, being spared. For example, none of the Northeast region’s nine states (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont) rank among the Top 15 with the largest unemployment rate increases. And only one, Vermont (#17, 32.1 percent), ranks in the Top 20.

Highest Rates of Increase in Unemployment, November 2008-February 2009

Rank	State	Region	Rate
1	Virginia	South	43.5
2	North Carolina	South	42.7
3	Wisconsin	Midwest	42.6
4	West Virginia	South	39.5
5	Oregon	West	38.5
6	Washington	West	37.7
7	Alabama	South	35.5
8	South Dakota	Midwest	35.3
9	North Dakota	Midwest	34.4
10	Indiana	Midwest	34.3
11	Utah	West	34.2
12	South Carolina	South	34.1
13	Colorado	West	33.3
14	Minnesota	Midwest	32.8
15	Hawaii	West	32.7
16	Ohio	Midwest	32.4
17	Delaware	South	32.1
17	Vermont	Northeast	32.1
19	Maryland	South	31.4
20	Georgia	South	31.0
21	Florida	South	30.6
22	New Jersey	Northeast	30.2
23	New Hampshire	Northeast	29.3
24	Maine	Northeast	29.0
25	Massachusetts	Northeast	27.9
26	Kentucky	South	27.8
27	California	West	26.5
28	Tennessee	South	26.4
29	Nevada	West	26.3
30	Wyoming	West	25.8
31	Oklahoma	South	25.0
31	Michigan	Midwest	25.0
33	Illinois	Midwest	24.6
34	New York	Northeast	23.8
35	Mississippi	South	23.0
35	Pennsylvania	Northeast	23.0
37	Kansas	Midwest	22.9
38	Montana	West	22.4
39	Missouri	Midwest	22.1
40	Texas	South	20.4
41	Arkansas	South	20.0
42	Alaska	West	17.6
43	Connecticut	Northeast	17.5
44	New Mexico	West	17.4
45	Idaho	West	17.2
46	Nebraska	Midwest	16.7
47	Arizona	West	15.6
48	Rhode Island	Northeast	15.4
49	Iowa	Midwest	14.0
50	Louisiana	South	7.5
	Average		27.6

Note: Data from U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics compiled by Smart Politics. Regions identified by the U.S. Census Bureau’s classification.

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