Unemployment rates are rising across U.S. metropolitan areas, provoking alarm across the nation and likely leading to interest rate cuts in September.
As of July, unemployment rates increased in 350 out of 389 U.S. metros areasâincluding 47 of the 51 largest metros, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
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To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Florida, using BLS data.
Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in July 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain.
County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.The national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 4.3%.
Still, itâs up substantially from 3.5% during the same month last year and has climbed to the highest rate since November 2021.
By comparison, unemployment rates surged to 10% in October 2009 during the Great Recession, and a full recovery took years. At the height of the brief COVID-19 recession in April 2020, unemployment hit 14.7%.
The Federal Reserve has shifted its focus from curbing inflation to unemployment, indicating plans to cut interest rates in the coming weeks and months to alleviate economic strain and avoid further job losses.
Since last year, unemployment has spiked in over half of statesâa signal often indicating a looming recession, as Piper Sandler Chief Global Economist Nancy Lazar told Business Insider.
These jobless rates, paired with layoffs among major U.S. employers like Google and Tesla, have sparked concern among Americans. Minus a major economic blow, economists continue to forecast that the U.S. is tracking toward an incremental slowdown in growth known as a âsoft landing.â To get a better idea of your communityâs current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Florida.
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#50. Santa Rosa County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 91,252 people (3,401 unemployed)
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#49. Collier County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 193,957 people (7,245 unemployed)
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#48. Hillsborough County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 826,979 people (30,679 unemployed)
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#47. Brevard County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 306,452 people (11,719 unemployed)
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#46. Palm Beach County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 780,205 people (29,798 unemployed)
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#45. Bradford County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: No change
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 10,905 people (430 unemployed)
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#44. Alachua County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: No change
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 143,020 people (5,544 unemployed)
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#43. Escambia County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 155,201 people (5,999 unemployed)
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#42. Leon County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: No change
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 162,254 people (6,339 unemployed)
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#41. Manatee County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 194,010 people (7,592 unemployed)
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#40. Sarasota County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 203,984 people (7,961 unemployed)
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#39. Lee County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 377,925 people (14,637 unemployed)
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#38. Lake County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 178,422 people (7,139 unemployed)
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#37. Duval County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 525,513 people (20,784 unemployed)
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#36. Columbia County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.1%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 29,880 people (1,214 unemployed)
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#35. Volusia County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.1%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 272,554 people (11,275 unemployed)
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#34. Lafayette County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,793 people (118 unemployed)
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#33. Union County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,617 people (195 unemployed)
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#32. Taylor County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 8,736 people (365 unemployed)
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#31. Washington County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,951 people (419 unemployed)
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#30. Okeechobee County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 18,092 people (752 unemployed)
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#29. Osceola County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 205,142 people (8,552 unemployed)
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#28. Jefferson County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,809 people (251 unemployed)
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#27. Madison County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,940 people (340 unemployed)
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#26. Pasco County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 267,576 people (11,384 unemployed)
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#25. Calhoun County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,911 people (217 unemployed)
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#24. Gilchrist County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,473 people (328 unemployed)
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#22. Jackson County (tie)
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 17,161 people (757 unemployed)
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#22. Levy County (tie)
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 17,339 people (757 unemployed)
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#21. Charlotte County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 78,473 people (3,491 unemployed)
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#20. St. Lucie County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 161,023 people (7,034 unemployed)
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#19. Dixie County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,877 people (267 unemployed)
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#18. Suwannee County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 18,132 people (811 unemployed)
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#17. Indian River County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 69,459 people (3,122 unemployed)
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#16. Liberty County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,634 people (120 unemployed)
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#15. Holmes County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,197 people (328 unemployed)
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#14. Flagler County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 51,739 people (2,372 unemployed)
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#13. Gadsden County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 18,471 people (865 unemployed)
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#12. Putnam County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 29,377 people (1,389 unemployed)
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#11. Marion County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 152,395 people (7,170 unemployed)
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#10. Polk County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 347,347 people (16,316 unemployed)
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#9. DeSoto County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 13,086 people (630 unemployed)
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#8. Hernando County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 79,569 people (3,915 unemployed)
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#7. Hamilton County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.0%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,227 people (213 unemployed)
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#6. Glades County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,879 people (249 unemployed)
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#5. Hardee County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,125 people (483 unemployed)
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#4. Highlands County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.6%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 37,347 people (2,084 unemployed)
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#3. Sumter County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
--- 1-month change: Up 1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 39,670 people (2,256 unemployed)
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#2. Citrus County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 49,277 people (2,904 unemployed)
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#1. Hendry County
- July unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.6%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 15,381 people (1,010 unemployed)
This story features data reporting and writing by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
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