Economy

Ames Iowa Unemployment Rate Lowest in America at 2.5%

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: March 20, 2016 9:39 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 11:45 am

When the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the January version of its “civilian labor force and unemployment by state and metropolitan area” report, Ames, Iowa, had the lowest rate of any city in America, at 2.5%. Iowa’s rate for the month came in at 4.4%

Six cities in the United States had an unemployment rate below 3%. In Addition to Ames, these include Portsmouth, N.H., at 2.5%; Ann Arbor, Mich., at 2.9%; Sioux Falls, S.D., at 2.7%; Fort Collins, Colo., at 2.8%; and Boulder, Colo. at 2.5%. Each sits at the vanguard of a trend. Overall unemployment by city has plunged.

BLS experts wrote:

Unemployment rates were lower in January than a year earlier in 333 of the 387 metropolitan areas, higher in 43 areas, and unchanged in 11 areas, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Six areas had jobless rates of less than 3.0 percent, and 12 areas had rates of at least 10.0 percent. Nonfarm payroll employment increased over the year in 325 metropolitan areas, decreased in 55 areas, and was unchanged in 7 areas. The national unemployment rate in January was 5.3 percent, not seasonally adjusted, down from 6.1 percent a year earlier

In its recently published Cities with the Highest and Lowest Unemployment, 24/7 Wall St. looked at Ames, based on its employment rate as of the final month of 2015:

Ames, Iowa
> December 2015 unemployment rate: 2.2%
> Unemployment rate, December 2014: 2.6%
> Unemployment rate, December 2005: 2.8%
> Median household income: $46,091
> Poverty rate: 22.5%
> Pct. of adults with a bachelor’s degree: 47.9%

No metro area has a lower unemployment rate than Ames, Iowa, where just 2.2% of the workforce is out of a job and looking for work, down from the year before and from 2005. Even in those years, the December jobless rates were among the lowest in the country. The area is home to numerous universities and educational institutions as well as major employers. This may partially explain the high educational attainment levels and low jobless rate. More than two in every five members of the labor force are employed in educational services and health care and social assistance. Of adults living in the area, nearly half have a bachelor’s degree.

Ames should sit near the low end of city unemployment rates throughout this year.