Richard Florida Examines The Regional Variance In Unemployment Figures

Richard Florida examines the stark regional variance behind American unemployment figures. He finds that Bismark and Fargo in North Dakota have least unemployment, while the Californian Central Valley suffers the highest.

1 minute read

September 30, 2011, 8:00 AM PDT

By George Haugh


Florida finds the Sun Belt and Western metros experience the highest unemployment, and this divide hasn't changed much since 2008. Theorists are unsure whether this is because of some factor slowing recovery, or an indication of a more structural shift to come.

In a decade marked internationally by the economic development of East Asia, the election of a President born in the Pacific, and a persistent European debt crisis it seems counter intuitive that the Atlantic side of the country would prove more economically resilient.

Thursday, September 29, 2011 in The Atlantic

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