Listen Live
WOL Featured Video
CLOSE

VIA WASHINGTON POST:

Unemployment fell in the District and Virginia in July but increased in Maryland, the Labor Department reported Friday.

In the District, unemployment edged down from 10.9 percent to 10.6 percent. More than 13,000 jobs were added to District payrolls last month, a larger number than most states. The District still leads the region in unemployment, and the unemployment rate remains significantly higher than it was a year ago when it stood at 7 percent.

The July unemployment rate in Virginia was 6.9 percent, down from 7.2 percent in June. In July 2008, unemployment in the state was 4 percent. Over the past 12 months, Virginia has shed 104,000 jobs.

In Maryland, the jobless rate rose to 8.4 percent in July, up from 7.3 percent. A year ago, unemployment in Maryland was 4.4 percent. Over the past 12 months, the state has shed 50,300 jobs.

Michigan continued to have the highest unemployment rate in the nation, at 15 percent. The national unemployment rate in July was 9.4 percent.

The Labor Department will release unemployment data for metropolitan areas Sept. 1.

Read more here.