DC unemployment rate remains highest in US for third consecutive month
MIAMI, FLORIDA - MAY 05: A 'Now Hiring' sign posted on the window of a business looking to hire workers on May 05, 2023 in Miami, Florida. A report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the US economy added 253,000 jobs in April. (Photo by Joe Rae
WASHINGTON - For the third month in a row, the unemployment rate in Washington D.C. is reported to be the highest in the nation.
What we know:
The District's seasonally adjusted jobless rate reached 6 percent in July, which is 2.2 percent higher than the nationwide unemployment rate, according to new data released Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Neighboring states also saw an uptick in unemployment rates in July, with Maryland at 3.4 percent (up from 3.3 percent) and Virginia at 3.6 percent (up from 3.5 percent).
DC amongst the highest unemployment rate, Maryland and Virginia tie
The unemployment rate across the country has reached new heights in comparison to previous years, with D.C. recording a jobless rate of 5.3%.
D.C.'s unemployment rate remained at 5.9 percent in May and June before rising by .1 percent in July.
Those recent numbers highlight mass layoffs of federal workers initiated by President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency earlier this year.
An overall decline in international tourism could also have an impact on the climbing unemployment rate in the District, according to the Associated Press.
Dig deeper:
Federal workers across government agencies have been either laid off or asked to voluntarily resign since the beginning of Trump's second term, drawing litigation from labor unions and advocacy groups.
In July, the Supreme Court cleared the way for the Trump administration's plans to downsize the federal workforce further, despite warnings that critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be out of their jobs.
The latest jobs numbers also come as Trump federalized the Metropolitan Police Department and deployed the National Guard to D.C. to reduce crime and boost immigration enforcement.
Bondi: 465 arrests, 68 guns seized since Trump’s DC crackdown began
Attorney General Pamela Bondi says 465 people have been arrested and 68 firearms seized since President Donald Trump launched a public safety crackdown in the District earlier this month.
By the numbers:
The latest D.C. Office of Revenue Analysis figures show that payments made to unemployed federal workers have been climbing month-over-month.
In April, unemployed workers received $2.01 million in unemployment payments, reaching $2.57 million by June.
The DC Fiscal Policy Institute argues that the federal worker layoffs will exacerbate D.C.’s black-white unemployment ratio.
The Source: Information from this article was sourced from the Associated Press and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.