New Mexico’s unemployment rate dropped slightly in May, standing at 5.1%, according to a June 17 report from the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions.
But the state still leads the country with the highest rate of unemployment of all 50 states, and still trails the national average of 3.6%.
Only the District of Columbia, which had an unemployment rate of 5.7% in May, had a higher rate of unemployment last month.
For New Mexico, however, the unemployment rate dropped from 5.3% in April and from 7.2% in May 2021, according to the department.
In Bernalillo County, the unemployment rate stood at 3.6% in May.
New Mexico’s total non-agricultural payroll employment increased by 38,600 jobs — an increase of nearly 5%.
The biggest increase came from the private sector, which posted a year over year increase of 5.5% — or about 34,800 jobs. In particular, the service providing industries were up about 24,800 jobs and the goods-producing industries were up about 10,000 jobs, according to the department.
