Tennessee's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May 2009 was released last week at 10.7 percent, 0.8 percentage point higher than the April rate of 9.9 percent. The United States’ unemployment rate for the month of May was 9.4 percent.

 

County non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rates for May 2009, released today, show that the rate increased in 88 counties, decreased in 6 counties and remained the same in one county.

Lincoln County registered the state's lowest county unemployment rate at 6.5 percent, up from 6.3 in April. Perry County had the state’s highest unemployment rate at 24.6 percent, up from 24.0 in April, followed by Lauderdale County at 19.2 percent, up from 18.2 percent in April. These figures do not reflect the impact of job-creation efforts in Perry County that were announced in May.

 

Knox County had the state’s lowest major metropolitan rate of 8.0 percent, up 0.6 percentage point from the April rate.  Davidson County was 8.6 percent, up 0.6.  Hamilton County was 8.8 percent, up 0.6 percentage point, and Shelby County was 9.6 percent, up 0.7 percentage point.