Prairie Public NewsRoom

Western energy states see unemployment jump

Your browser doesn’t support HTML5 audio

Several western states whose economies depend heavily on the fossil fuel industry have seen major jumps in unemployment. Inside Energy’s Amy Sisk has more.
 
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports Colorado’s unemployment rate went up significantly in May. Over the past year, rates in Wyoming and North Dakota grew faster than any other state. Plummeting prices for coal, oil and natural gas hit workers hard.
 
In Wyoming. the rate jumped 1.4 percent to 5.6 percent.
 
In North Dakota it climbed 0.4 percent to 3.2 percent.
 
David Bullard with Wyoming’s Department of Workforce Services says jobless people have remained in his state. But that’s not the case in North Dakota.
 
"They added jobs really quickly and when the jobs went away, I’m guessing that people left," he says.
 
Bullard says this exodus explains why North Dakota’s unemployment rate jumped less than Wyoming’s.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Related Content
  1. Natural gas pipeline deadline extended until Dec. 15th
  2. Oil companies say they're stepping up efforts to capture more natural gas from wells
  3. Xcel natural gas customers will pay $15.72 per month for 15 months because of Texas' Feb. cold