N. Dakota Leads U.S. with 2.9% June Jobless Rate

While the overall U.S. labor market struggles through another jobless recovery with 41 straight months of unemployment above 8% starting in February 2009 (see chart), the state of North Dakota provides a remarkable contrast.  The BLS released data today on regional and state employment, and reported that the jobless rate in the Peace Garden State fell again to a four-year low of 2.9% in June, the lowest rate there in more than four years (see chart).  Once again, the June jobless rate in North Dakota was the lowest in the country, and almost a full percent below second-place Nebraska's 3.8% rate, more than five percentage points below the national average of 8.2%, and almost nine percentage points below Nevada's 11.6% (highest in the country). 

Here's a related Fox News report and video titled "Boom in oil industry creates wealth of jobs in North Dakota." Maren Daley, executive director of Job Service North Dakota almost sounds like he's paraphrasing Obama when he remarked that:

"I think what's good for us is good for the country and, we have employees from all over. We have investors from all over the country, so we're part of the big symbiotic relationship across the country and we couldn't do it alone without the rest of our country working with us."