Alaska's unemployment rate is now the highest in the country.
The state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in May was 6.7 percent, according to preliminary numbers from the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
That's up just slightly from April's 6.6 percent. Nationally, the unemployment rate last month was 4.3 percent, a 16-year low.
Alaska came in at No. 51 after all other states and the District of Columbia, according to numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Jesus we're not even just in 50th place, we are at 51st place after DC.
I imagine if we suddenly decided to make Puerto Rico a state that we would then slip to 52nd.
The article goes on to explain that due to the season nature of much of the work up here, that our unemployment numbers are always high and hard to calculate, but I would argue that there is definitely something different happening up here right now.
My job is typically recession proof and pretty stable, but lately even I have had to deal with a lack of supports and services that I rely on to do my job effectively.
There is very little in the way of negotiating power for employees and all over the state folks are seeing overtime and benefits cut from businesses that have always been seen as great places to work.
This may in part be due to the oil money drying up, or simply due to too many years of Republican control, but right now things are getting tight.
In other words if you were thinking that now is the time to move to the Last Frontier, I would suggest you put those plans on the back burner.
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