In November 2023, the seasonally adjusted preliminary unemployment rate in Kentucky was 4.3%, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS), part of the Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet. This figure was up 0.1 percentage point from October 2023 and 0.4 percentage points from a year earlier.

Meanwhile, the U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2023 was 3.7%, down 0.2 percentage points from October 2023, as reported by the U.S. Department of Labor. These figures are based on estimates from a household Current Population Survey designed to measure employment trends, including those self-employed and those in agriculture.

In Kentucky, the civilian labor force dropped by 3,994 to 2,036,638 in November 2023. As a result, the number of employed people in the state fell by 5,689 to 1,949,393, while the number of people unemployed rose by 1,695 to 87,245.

According to Mike Clark, Ph.D., the Director of the University of Kentucky’s Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER), this job decline has led to an increase in job seekers and a decrease in Kentucky’s labor force.

In a separate federal business establishment survey, excluding agricultural jobs and self-employed individuals, Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment fell by 5,500 jobs to 2,028,100 in November 2023. However, Kentucky’s nonfarm employment still was 51,900 jobs or 2.6% higher compared to November 2022.

Indicating first decrease in the otherwise strong year for Kentucky’s employment growth, Clark highlighted the falling estimates for Kentucky’s payroll employment in November 2023.

For more information about Kentucky labor market data, you can visit http://kystats.ky.gov/KYLMI.