Tracking New Mexico’s (still well below pandemic start) workforce participation rates

As RGF has previously reported, New Mexico has the highest unemployment rate in the United States. Unfortunately, New Mexico also has a very low workforce participation rate as seen below. The BLS data are available here.

In addition to having the lowest workforce participation rate New Mexico’s rate has dropped by more than any of our neighboring states since the month prior to the Pandemic. NM’s rate is 2 percentage points lower today. Texas, the worst performing state beside NM dropped 0.8 percentage points.

20-Feb  22-Feb
Arizona 58.9 58.6
Colorado 66.5 66
New Mexico 55.5 53.5
Oklahoma 58.7 58.6
Texas 61.2 60.4
Utah 66.4 66