Gov. Robert Bentley announced this morning that Alabama’s preliminary seasonally adjusted November unemployment rate is 6.2%, down from October’s 6.4% rate.

November’s percentage rate represents 132,381 people unemployed in Alabama, compared to 137,160 in October and 148,956 from last November.

“The long-term trend in Alabama’s unemployment rate is encouraging news for Alabamians who want a job,” Governor Robert Bentley said. “Every Alabama county has a decrease in their unemployment rate for November, and that is a sign that Alabamians are getting back to work in both rural and urban areas of Alabama. There is still much work left to be done, however, until Alabama reaches full employment, and our efforts to recruit more jobs will continue.”

Friday’s announcement constitutes the third time this year that the state’s unemployment rate has been at it’s lowest in five years. July and August reported an unemployment rate of 6.2%. The last time unemployment was below 6.2% was in October 2008 with a 5.9% rating.

“Not surprisingly, it appears as though seasonal hiring, especially in retail establishments, helped to lower our unemployment rate,” Alabama Labor Commissioner Tom Surtees said. “This traditionally happens during the months of November and December as employers prepare for the Christmas shopping rush.”

The state reported the major areas of growth were seen in the trade, transportation, and utilities sector, including retail trade, which saw an increase of close to 8,000 jobs.

“The decline in the county unemployment rates, which range from at least a half a percentage point to nearly two, may present a clearer picture of what is actually going on throughout Alabama as the county data are not seasonally adjusted,” said Surtees.

“Seasonal adjustment” refers to Bureau of Labor Statistics’ preparations for certain trends in the labor force, like holiday hires, or the rise seen when graduates hit the labor force, and predicting their effects of the unemployment rate. The not seasonally adjusted data show the number of people working in a county, with no seasonal factors imposed.

Counties with the lowest unemployment rate in November were: Shelby County at 3.6% and Lee County at 4.5%. The highest recorded unemployment rates were in the black belt region: Wilcox County at 13.9%, Bullock County at 11.9%, and Perry and Dallas County at 11.1%.

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