N.C Budget & Tax Center

6.3—unemployment rate in North Carolina for Oct. 2014 (Labor and Economic Analysis Division, Department of Commerce, October 2014)

1.3—percentage points that the October 2014 unemployment rate in North Carolina remains above the December 2007 unemployment rate (N.C. Budget & Tax Center BTC analysis of Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Labor and Economic Analysis Division, NC Department of Commerce)

28.3—percentage growth in number of unemployed people in North Carolina since December 2007 (BTC analysis of Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Labor and Economic Analysis Division, NC Department of Commerce)

289,180—number of workers missing from the labor force who would otherwise be looking for work if job opportunities were stronger (“Missing Workers in North Carolina,” N.C. Budget & Tax Center)

12.5— the unemployment rate in North Carolina if workers missing from the labor force were included in the calculation (Ibid)

26—number of states that have replaced the jobs that were lost during the Great Recession (N.C. Budget & Tax Center Analysis of Employment to Population Ratios, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Labor and Economic Analysis Division, NC Department of Commerce)

0—number of states that have reached the same level of employment as they had in December 2007 after accounting for population growth (N.C. Budget & Tax Center Analysis of Employment to Population Ratios, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Labor and Economic Analysis Division, NC Department of Commerce)

440,600—number of jobs North Carolina still needs to create to provide all who want to work with a job opportunity (Economic Policy Institute, Job Watch October 2014, Analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data)

2.4—percentage growth in the labor force despite 11 percent growth in the working age population (N.C. Budget & Tax Center analysis of Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Labor and Economic Analysis Division, NC Department of Commerce)

7.6—percentage decline in the state’s labor force participation rate since December 2007 (Ibid)

48—percentage of the decline in the number of unemployed workers due to the declining labor force (Ibid)