Counties with the highest unemployment rate in Tennessee
Unemployment rates, while significantly lower than the alarming pandemic peak of 14.7% experienced in April 2020, remain a subject of concern, notably as economic experts bandy around the idea of a potential recession by 2023. The last economic recession—the Great Recession of 2008-2010—sent rates up to 10% as of October 2009. It was not until the spring of 2019 that unemployment finally went down to the same level it sits at now.
As of October of this year, national unemployment is at 3.7%, 0.2% higher than in September. Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates by state demonstrate a rather sizable spectrum, ranging from just 2.0% in Minnesota, to 4.5% in Illinois and 4.7% in the District of Columbia. Further breakdown by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows yet another county-based spectrum within each state.
To that end, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rate in Tennessee using data from the BLS. Counties are ranked by unemployment rate in September 2022.
#50. Claiborne County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: -0.1%
- Total labor force: 12,633 (408 unemployed)
#49. Henderson County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.3%
- Total labor force: 11,586 (370 unemployed)
#48. Lawrence County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.0%
- Total labor force: 19,009 (615 unemployed)
#47. Roane County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: 0.0%
- Total labor force: 23,820 (762 unemployed)
#46. Tipton County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.5%
- Total labor force: 27,693 (875 unemployed)
#45. DeKalb County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.6%
- Total labor force: 7,716 (258 unemployed)
#44. Grainger County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: -0.1%
- Total labor force: 9,736 (322 unemployed)
#43. Henry County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: +0.1%
- Total labor force: 13,989 (461 unemployed)
#42. Lewis County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: -2.1%
- Total labor force: 5,620 (185 unemployed)
#41. Monroe County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: +0.2%
- Total labor force: 20,694 (675 unemployed)
#40. Montgomery County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.5%
- Total labor force: 87,540 (2,926 unemployed)
#39. Morgan County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.3%
- Total labor force: 7,848 (259 unemployed)
#38. Pickett County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: +0.5%
- Total labor force: 2,130 (70 unemployed)
#37. White County
--- 1 month change: -0.2%
--- 1 year change: 0.0%
- Total labor force: 11,369 (371 unemployed)
#36. Fentress County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: +0.2%
- Total labor force: 7,342 (246 unemployed)
#35. Greene County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 27,708 (935 unemployed)
#34. Jackson County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 4,733 (160 unemployed)
#33. Stewart County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.1%
- Total labor force: 5,274 (177 unemployed)
#32. Carroll County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 11,112 (384 unemployed)
#31. Dyer County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: -0.4%
- Total labor force: 15,635 (542 unemployed)
#30. Hancock County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.8%
- Total labor force: 2,237 (79 unemployed)
#29. Hawkins County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.4%
- Total labor force: 23,009 (796 unemployed)
#28. Marion County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: +0.1%
- Total labor force: 12,158 (422 unemployed)
#27. Obion County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: -0.3%
- Total labor force: 11,936 (420 unemployed)
#26. Hardin County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 9,765 (348 unemployed)
#25. Sequatchie County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.1%
- Total labor force: 6,101 (221 unemployed)
#24. Warren County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: -0.4%
- Total labor force: 16,164 (586 unemployed)
#23. Benton County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: -0.4%
- Total labor force: 6,620 (248 unemployed)
#22. Campbell County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 15,020 (556 unemployed)
#21. McMinn County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.1%
- Total labor force: 20,991 (785 unemployed)
#20. Unicoi County
--- 1 month change: -0.7%
--- 1 year change: -0.3%
- Total labor force: 7,050 (264 unemployed)
#19. Cumberland County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: +0.1%
- Total labor force: 22,050 (837 unemployed)
#18. Houston County
--- 1 month change: -0.8%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 3,143 (120 unemployed)
#17. Clay County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.3%
- Total labor force: 2,710 (106 unemployed)
#16. Grundy County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.7%
- Total labor force: 4,994 (201 unemployed)
#15. Hardeman County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: -1.3%
- Total labor force: 8,588 (344 unemployed)
#14. Rhea County
--- 1 month change: -0.7%
--- 1 year change: +0.1%
- Total labor force: 13,752 (551 unemployed)
#13. Meigs County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: +0.2%
- Total labor force: 5,090 (210 unemployed)
#12. Van Buren County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.2%
- Total labor force: 2,022 (82 unemployed)
#11. Cocke County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: +0.1%
- Total labor force: 14,354 (597 unemployed)
#10. Decatur County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.7%
- Total labor force: 4,148 (179 unemployed)
#9. McNairy County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: +0.1%
- Total labor force: 8,072 (349 unemployed)
#8. Wayne County
--- 1 month change: -0.3%
--- 1 year change: +0.8%
- Total labor force: 6,233 (269 unemployed)
#7. Haywood County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: -0.7%
- Total labor force: 7,386 (327 unemployed)
#6. Scott County
--- 1 month change: -0.1%
--- 1 year change: +0.4%
- Total labor force: 7,928 (359 unemployed)
#5. Shelby County
--- 1 month change: -0.8%
--- 1 year change: -1.3%
- Total labor force: 442,367 (19,993 unemployed)
#4. Lake County
--- 1 month change: -0.6%
--- 1 year change: +0.2%
- Total labor force: 1,576 (74 unemployed)
#3. Lauderdale County
--- 1 month change: -0.4%
--- 1 year change: -0.6%
- Total labor force: 9,398 (438 unemployed)
#2. Bledsoe County
--- 1 month change: -0.5%
--- 1 year change: +0.7%
- Total labor force: 4,256 (204 unemployed)
#1. Perry County
--- 1 month change: -0.7%
--- 1 year change: -3.2%
- Total labor force: 2,679 (130 unemployed)