NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WMOT) -- Tennessee’s unemployment rate has now fallen for four straight months, dropping in June to 5.7 percent.
The jobless rate fell one-tenth of one percent from the May reading. The national unemployment rate was down last month, falling to 5.3 percent.
Tennessee’s jobless rate fell steadily from a high 9.6 percent during the summer of 2011 through January of 2014, but then stalled near 6.5 percent for much of last year. Unemployment began to fall again in March.
The state Department of Labor says Tennessee added 5,500 jobs from May to June. Most of those new jobs were created in business services, health care, and manufacturing.
Nearly 3 million Tennesseans are employed, while just under 178,000 residents are currently looking for work.
In the most recent report, 9 out of 10 of the counties with the lowest jobless rates were located here in Middle Tennessee.