Hawaii’s unemployment rate for September nearly doubled the national average, the Labor Department reported Tuesday, as coronavirus cases have recently surged in the state.
The Aloha State reported a 15.1% unemployment rate for September, the highest of all states. The national average was 7.9% last month.
Hawaii’s unemployment rate is on the rise, which is the opposite of what happened in most states last month. The jobless rate declined in 30 states, and only eight saw an increase. The remaining 12 remained stable.
Blue states had higher unemployment than red states, by and large.
The jobless rate was 11% in California and 9.7% in New York last month. Red states such as Georgia and Montana experienced much lower rates at 6.4% and 5.3%, respectively.
For Hawaii, the surge in coronavirus cases forced it to close its economy until Oct. 1.
Pre-October, Hawaii was closed for roughly seven months. During this time, tourists that did arrive had to quarantine for 14 days. Starting Oct. 1, they can avoid this rule by showing they tested negative for the virus in the last 72 hours.
Meanwhile, Hawaii’s jobs market has changed dramatically from a year ago.
In September 2019, Hawaii had a 2.7% unemployment rate, which was well below the national rate of 3.5%. Year-over-year, the state’s jobless rate has increased 12.4%. Over 120,000 Hawaiians have lost their jobs in the past year.
Initially, Hawaii was seen as a state controlling the spread of the virus, reporting 900 cases between February and June. That number began to increase in July and is now over 14,000, according to the state’s Health Department.
Since July, the state’s unemployment rate has gone from 13.5% to 15.1%.
While the state has reopened, its rebound will be hurt by a no-sail order for all cruise liners operating in U.S. waters. The order remains in effect, and as of Oct. 18, there are no scheduled cruise bookings in Hawaii for the remainder of 2020, according to the state’s Department of Transportation.
