With the job market in the U.S. gaining 943,000 jobs in July, exceeding expert predictions, a new updated rankings report for the States Whose Unemployment Rates Are Bouncing Back Most, shows which areas of the country have had the best recovery so far.

To identify the states whose unemployment rates are bouncing back most, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on five key metrics that compare unemployment rate statistics from the latest month for which data is available (July 2021) to key dates in 2019 and 2020.

Below, you can see highlights from the report regarding California’s numbers:

Unemployment Recovery in California (1=Most Recovered, 25=Avg.):

  • 81.87% Change in Unemployment (July 2021 vs July 2019)
    • 1,433,845 unemployed people in July 2021 vs 788,410 in July 2019;
    • 7th worst recovery in the U.S.
  • 74.05% Change in Unemployment (July 2021 vs January 2020)
    • 1,433,845 unemployed people in July 2021 vs 823,824 in January 2020;
    • 8th worst recovery in the U.S.
  • -41.80% Change in Unemployment (July 2021 vs July 2020)
    • 1,433,845 unemployed people in July 2021 vs 2,463,494 in July 2020;
    • 21st worst recovery in the U.S.
  • 133.85% Change in Not Seasonally Adjusted Continued Claims (July 2021 vs July 2019)
    • 716,486 continued claims in July 2021 vs 306,388 in July 2019;
    • 11th worst recovery in the U.S.
  • 7.6% Unemployment Rate (July 2021)
    • 4th highest unemployment rate in the U.S.

Does the European travel ban hurt employment?

“The European travel ban does hurt employment, as the recent WalletHub study found that states stand to lose billions of dollars in tourism revenue due to the lack of European travelers this year,” said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. “Without the inflow of money from these European tourists, the industries that depend on them won’t be able to hire as many employees. What’s strange about the European travel ban is that it’s not based on COVID-19 incidence rates – there are plenty of countries with higher incidence rates whose residents are allowed entry into the U.S.”

Tips for a new class of college graduates who are now looking for jobs were also suggested.

“College graduates who are now looking for jobs should start their search in sectors that were impacted most by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as entertainment, retail, dining, and travel. As states reopen, these sectors are experiencing some of the biggest job gains, so graduates will have the greatest chance of getting a job as quickly as possible. Once graduates have stable employment and can pay their bills, they can then start looking to switch to jobs that are more relevant to their degrees,” Gonzalez said.“Another important tip for recent graduates is to get vaccinated, which could help their chances of getting hired by certain employers.”

Is there a big difference in the unemployment rate among various demographics?

“The unemployment rate does differ sharply among different demographics. The unemployment rate for white people is 5%, while it’s much higher, at 8.7%, for black people. The racial disparity is troubling, especially in the context of broader discussions of inequality that have taken place in the past year,” Gonzalez added.

“The unemployment rate can fluctuate a lot by age, too; it’s only 3.8% for those ages 45 to 54, but 9.1% for people ages 20 to 24. It makes sense that people who have been in the workforce longer would have more job stability, but we should be concerned about the difficult conditions faced by young people.”

Biggest Increase

Hawaii is the state that has experienced the biggest increase in unemployment vs. the beginning of 2020 because the number of unemployed persons jumped by 242% from January 2020 to July 2021, compared to the average increase of 42% and Hawaii’s overall unemployment rate is 7.3%, compared to the average of 5.4%.

Biggest Decrease

The state that has experienced the biggest decrease in unemployment vs. the beginning of 2020 is Nebraska because it has seen a 22% decrease in the number of unemployed persons from January 2020 to July 2021, compared to the average increase of 42%. Nebraska’s overall unemployment rate is 2.3%, compared to the average of 5.4%.

Source: WalletHub