Reviewed by: Michael Seale
Alabama sets record highs in employment and wages for 2024
Reading time: 3 minutes
Alabama ended 2024 by setting new employment and wage records, according to the Alabama Department of Labor.
Meanwhile, the state’s 3.3% unemployment rate continues to hover almost a full percentage point lower than the 4.1% national unemployment rate average.
Alabama wage and employment records in 2024
If you felt like you had more money to spend on gifts this holiday season, Alabama’s recent December 2024 jobs, wages and unemployment report explains why.
The state ended 2024 on a high note.
Check out these December 2024 findings by the Department of Labor.
- The civilian labor force increased to 2,356,650, a new record high, with 31,345 more people joining over the year
- Over the year, wage and salary employment increased by 39,900 to 2,234,300, also a new record high, with gains in the private education and health services sector (+11,500), the leisure and hospitality sector (+7,800), and the government sector (+6,500), among others.
- Average weekly wages increased to a new record high, with the total private sector registering $1,094.21 a week, which represents an increase of $50.09 over the year.
- Several sectors also saw new record high weekly wages, including:
- Trade, transportation, and utilities at $918.31
- Professional and business services at $1,395.37
- Private education and health services at $1,047.85
Unemployment rate ticks up
Coinciding with higher wages and increased jobs has been a low unemployment rate that has ticked upwards year to year.
Alabama’s December 2024 3.3% unemployment rate is .5% higher than 2023’s December 2023 rate which landed at 2.8%. Historically, over the last 14 years, it is still low.
Below are past December unemployment rates in Alabama:
- 2020 — 4.5% (Covid 19 Pandemic)
- 2019 — 3.1% (Pre-Covid)
- 2015 — 6.1%
- 2010 — 10.1% (recovering from the Great Recession
State of the cities and counties
Drilling down even deeper into the December 2024 numbers, how are Alabama’s cities and counties doing?
Counties with the lowest unemployment rates in Alabama are:
- Shelby County at 2.4%
- Morgan and Marshall Counties at 2.6%
- Madison, Cullman, Chilton, Cherokee Counties at 2.7%.
Counties with the highest unemployment rates are:
- Wilcox County at 8.5%
- Clarke County at 6.8%,
- Greene County at 6.6%
Major cities with the lowest unemployment rates are:
- Homewood and Vestavia Hills at 2.1%
- Alabaster at 2.3%
- Madison at 2.4%.
Major cities with the highest unemployment rates are:
- Selma at 7.1%
- Prichard at 5.8%
- Anniston and Gadsden at 4.8%
Want to know how your community is doing? Visit the Alabama Labor Market Information page.
Subscribe to The Bama Buzz Newsletter to get the latest updates delivered right to your inbox.