Boroughs with the highest unemployment in Alaska

Written by:
October 4, 2024
Canva

Boroughs with the highest unemployment in Alaska

Unemployment rates have continued to rise across U.S. metropolitan areas, provoking alarm throughout the nation and guiding the Federal Reserve's decision to cut interest rates last month.

As of August, unemployment rates had increased from the previous year in 315 out of 389 U.S. metros areas—including 45 of the 51 largest metros, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of boroughs with the highest unemployment rates in Alaska, using BLS data. Boroughs are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in August 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that borough, though some ties may remain. Borough-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.

The national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 4.1% in September, down slightly from the previous month. Still, it's up substantially from 3.8% during the same month last year and remains higher than it had otherwise been since December 2021. By comparison, unemployment rates surged to 10% in October 2009 during the Great Recession, and a full recovery took years. At the height of the brief COVID-19 recession in April 2020, unemployment hit 14.7%.

The Federal Reserve has shifted its focus from curbing inflation to unemployment, cutting interest rates to alleviate economic strain and spur job growth.

Since last year, unemployment has spiked in half of states—a signal often indicating a looming recession, as Piper Sandler Chief Global Economist Nancy Lazar told Business Insider. These jobless rates, paired with layoffs among major U.S. employers like Google and Tesla, have sparked concern among Americans. Minus a major economic blow, economists continue to forecast that the U.S. is tracking toward an incremental slowdown in growth known as a "soft landing." The Fed plans to continue cutting rates to achieve this.

To get a better idea of your community's current economy, read on to see the boroughs with the highest unemployment in Alaska.

1 / 30
CSNafzger // Shutterstock

#30. Bristol Bay Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 672 people (12 unemployed)

2 / 30
Canva

#29. Aleutians East Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,079 people (58 unemployed)

3 / 30
Canva

#28. Skagway Municipality

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,152 people (23 unemployed)

4 / 30
Joseph Sohm // Shutterstock

#27. Denali Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,749 people (41 unemployed)

5 / 30
Canva

#26. Sitka Borough/city

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 4,870 people (129 unemployed)

6 / 30
Canva

#25. Aleutians West Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,873 people (104 unemployed)

7 / 30
Canva

#24. Juneau Borough/city

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 17,578 people (481 unemployed)

8 / 30
Canva

#23. Hoonah-Angoon Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 1,594 people (44 unemployed)

9 / 30
Canva

#22. Chugach Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,281 people (138 unemployed)

10 / 30
Canva

#21. Ketchikan Gateway Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
--- 1-month change: No change
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,449 people (246 unemployed)

11 / 30
Canva

#20. Anchorage Borough/municipality

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 151,287 people (5,136 unemployed)

12 / 30
EQRoy // Shutterstock

#19. Fairbanks North Star Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 45,703 people (1,577 unemployed)

13 / 30
Canva

#18. Kodiak Island Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
--- 1-month change: No change
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,224 people (227 unemployed)

14 / 30
Canva

#17. Haines Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 1,349 people (51 unemployed)

15 / 30
Canva

#16. Petersburg Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 1,569 people (62 unemployed)

16 / 30
Canva

#15. Kenai Peninsula Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 29,075 people (1,156 unemployed)

17 / 30
Canva

#14. Wrangell Borough/city

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,056 people (44 unemployed)

18 / 30
Canva

#13. Matanuska-Susitna Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 49,473 people (2,078 unemployed)

19 / 30
Canva

#12. Copper River Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: No change
--- 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,664 people (76 unemployed)

20 / 30
Canva

#11. Southeast Fairbanks Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: No change
- Total labor force: 3,598 people (170 unemployed)

21 / 30
Canva

#10. North Slope Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,068 people (154 unemployed)

22 / 30
Canva

#9. Yakutat Borough/city

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 345 people (18 unemployed)

23 / 30
Canva

#8. Lake and Peninsula Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
--- 1-month change: Up 1.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 739 people (46 unemployed)

24 / 30
Canva

#7. Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,718 people (189 unemployed)

25 / 30
Canva

#6. Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Down 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,505 people (181 unemployed)

26 / 30
Canva

#5. Dillingham Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.4%
--- 1-month change: Up 0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,798 people (133 unemployed)

27 / 30
Canva

#4. Nome Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,985 people (338 unemployed)

28 / 30
Canva

#3. Northwest Arctic Borough

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,925 people (274 unemployed)

29 / 30
Canva

#2. Bethel Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 11.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,340 people (740 unemployed)

30 / 30
Marlene Moore // Shutterstock

#1. Kusilvak Census Area

- August unemployment rate (preliminary): 19.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 3.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,040 people (391 unemployed)

This story features data reporting and writing by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.

Trending Now