Alabama’s Unemployment Rate Drops to Record Low

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP)- Alabama’s unemployment rate has fallen to 4.9 percent, the lowest level since 2008.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey made the announcement in a Friday press conference.

The level would have allowed former Gov. Robert Bentley to take a salary had he stayed in office. Bentley made a campaign promise not to collect a paycheck until unemployment dropped to 5.2 percent. Bentley resigned in April amid a push to impeach him over ethics allegations.

Ivey says she was proud of the improvement. She says the state will work “until every Alabamian who wants a job, has a job.”

In our area, the unemployment rate is 5 percent in Pickens County–a drop from the previous month’s.

In Lamar County, the unemployment rate is 3.9 percent–also lower than April’s rate, which was 4.2 percent.

However, Alabama has a higher unemployment rate than most of the nation. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that only 11 states in May had unemployment rates that were the same, or worse, than Alabama’s.