MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WMOT) -- Tennessee’s unemployment rate has risen sharply in recent months, bucking the national jobless rate which continues to fall.
Just released data from the Tennessee Department of Labor pegs the state’s August unemployment rate at 7.4 percent, up 3 tenths over July and up more than a full percentage point since May.
The federal jobless rate now stands at 6.1 percent or 1.3 percent below the Tennessee number.
Taking a longer view, Tennessee’s unemployment rate has fallen over the past year, down from 8.4 percent in August, 2013. The state has added just under 60,000 new jobs since last summer.