Kentucky’s annual unemployment rate for 2024 was 5.1 percent, which represents an increase from 4.3 percent in 2023, according to data released Monday by the Kentucky Center for Statistics, an agency of the Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ estimate of the number of employed Kentuckians for 2024 was 1,987,643. This figure was up 19,398 from the 1,968,245 employed in 2023.
The number of unemployed Kentuckians for 2024 was 106,205, an increase of 17,941 from the 88,264 unemployed in 2023. There were 23,346 fewer individuals unemployed in 2024 than 10 years ago.
In 2024, the estimated number of Kentuckians in the civilian labor force was 2,093,848. This was up 37,339 from the 2,056,509 recorded in 2023, and up 82,010 from 10 years ago when the civilian labor force was 2,011,838.
Kentucky was one of 21 states that experienced a statistically significant increase in their annual unemployment rates from 2023 to 2024. Kentucky’s unemployment rate for 2024 was higher than 47 states and lower than two states. Nevada had the highest unemployment rate in 2024 at 5.6 percent, while South Dakota had the lowest rate at 1.8 percent. Kentucky had the highest unemployment rate among its surrounding states.
“The number of people employed in Kentucky grew by one percent from 2023 to 2024,” said University of Kentucky’s Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) Director Mike Clark. “However, the state saw people enter the labor force at a faster rate, which has contributed to an increase in the state’s unemployment rate. Kentucky’s labor force growth rate of 1.8 percent was also considerably faster than growth in the national labor force, which increased by only 0.6 percent from 2023 to 2024.”
In a separate federal survey of business establishments (excluding jobs in agriculture and people who are self-employed), Kentucky’s nonfarm annual average payroll employment in 2024 increased by 21,148 or one percent to 2,037,797 jobs.
“In total, Kentucky’s employers added workers to their payrolls in 2024,” Clark said. “The commonwealth saw particularly strong job growth in its education and health care services, government, and construction sectors. However, these gains were partially offset by losses in professional and business services, information, and financial activities sectors.”
By Tom Latek, Kentucky Today
