Unemployment in Newton County came in at 3.8 percent in November, according to a government shutdown-delayed report from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security.
November’s unemployment number came in three-tenths of a point higher than September’s rate of 3.5 percent. (Because of a lack of Labor Force Estimates due to missing Household Survey Estimates and the Federal Government Shutdown, October 2025 numbers could not be calculated.) The November 2025 rate comes in four-tenths of a point higher than a year prior, when it was reported at 3.4 percent.
The county’s November rate ranks as the state’s 25th lowest rate in the state, sharing the ranking with five other counties: Benton, Lawrence, Neshoba, Pontotoc, and Yalobusha.
The estimated number of unemployed in Newton County for the month of November climbed by 20, to 310, while the number of employed dropped by 80 to 7,810. The county’s civilian labor force decreased by 50, down to 8,130.
Mississippi’s not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2025 was 3.8 percent, increasing four-tenths of a percentage point from the November 2024 rate of 3.4 percent. The Nation’s not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2025 at 4.3 percent increased three-tenths of a percentage point over the year.
Mississippi’s not seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment increased 8,800 over the month and 7,700 over the year. The industry sectors registering the largest monthly employment gains were Trade, Transportation & Utilities; Leisure & Hospitality; and Professional & Business Services.
For the month of November 2025, thirty counties in Mississippi posted unemployment rates less than or equal to the state’s rate of 3.8 percent. Rankin County posted the lowest unemployment rate for the month of November at 2.8 percent followed by Lafayette County at 2.9 percent. Jefferson County had the highest unemployment rate for November at 10.4 percent followed by Claiborne County at 8.7 percent.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2025 at 3.8 percent was two-tenths of a percentage point higher than the 3.6 percent reported for November 2024. The Nation’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate at 4.6 percent increased four-tenths of a percentage point from the year ago rate of 4.2 percent.
According to the seasonally adjusted results from a survey of Mississippi employers, there were 1,206,600 jobs in Mississippi in November 2025, tying for the highest number of jobs in history. The number of nonfarm jobs increased 3,500 over the month and 10,100 over the year. The Leisure & Hospitality sector had the largest monthly employment increase. Seasonally adjusted data removes the effects of events that follow a more or less regular pattern each year such as the influences of weather, holidays, the opening and closing of schools, and other recurring seasonal events. These adjustments make it easier to observe the cyclical and other non-seasonal movements in a data series. Amounts are seasonally adjusted at the National and State levels only.
