CLAY COUNTY-Jobless rates here and in more than 20 other counties in Tennessee declined from the previous month, the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) announced last week.

In 23 of the state’s 95 counties, unemployment rates for December were down when compared with November rates.

Here in Clay County, the unemployment rate fell 0.2% from 4.8% in November to 4.6% in December of 2024.

The local numbers place Clay County outside of the Top 10 highest rates in the state, with the highest being Unicoi County at 5.9% and the lowest being Moore County at 2.5%.

Numbers show Clay County had a labor force of 2,938 in December, with only 135 of those workers being unemployed and a total of 2,803 employed at the time.

Besides the 23 counties whose rates dropped, rates remained the same in 39 counties and increased in 33 counties over the same time period.

All but five Tennessee counties recorded unemployment rates of less than 5% in December.  Those five counties had rates that were 5% or greater, but less than 10%.

Besides Moore County, Williamson County had the second-lowest unemployment rate in the state.  At 2.6%, it was unchanged from the previous month.

Sevier County followed with an unemployment rate for December of 2.7%, an increase of one-tenth of a percentage point from November.

Behind Unicoi County at the bottom, Bledsoe, McNairy, Houston, and Lake counties followed with rates of 5.2%.

TDLWD reported last week that Tennessee’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.6% in December.

While up slightly over the previous month, the state’s rate is still five-tenths of a percentage point below the national rate of 4.1%.

2024 was a record year as Tennessee recorded all-time low rates of 3% in May, June, and July.

Unlike the statewide rate, county rates are not adjusted to account for seasonal impacts on employment, such as weather and school breaks.

An overview of county unemployment data, including labor force estimates for local areas across the state, is available online at www.tn.gov/workforce.