NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The unemployment rate in April 2021 stayed around the same as it had been for the past few months in Tennessee according to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development — at around 5%. It decreased just 0.1% from the month before.
However, the number was around three times smaller than the unemployment rate last year, in April 2020, when it reached record-highs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Back then, it was at 15.8%. The number improved as businesses reopened and consumers gained more confidence to spend money.
Wages also grew in April, with workers taking home an average of $879.75 per week according to a report for the TDLWD, an increase of around $16 compared to March. However, those wages were still lower than the national average of $975.10.
Between March and April 2021, employers added 9,800 jobs to the state's economy. Officials said most of them were in retail with the accommodation and food services industry counting for the second-highest gains. The third highest gains were in professional, scientific and technical services.
The size of Tennessee's labor force grew to 3,325,306 and participation in it increase to 60.7%.
The national unemployment also stayed near the previous month's levels, with just an increase of 0.1%. It is now 6.1%.
