Nebraska’s January Unemployment Rate Remains at 3.0

At-a-Glance

Nebraska’s Job Market Steady Amid National Changes

Nebraska’s preliminary unemployment rate for January 2026 is 3.0 percent, seasonally adjusted. After benchmarking revisions completed by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the rate has been unchanged going back to November 2025 and is up 0.1 percentage points from the January 2025 unemployment rate of 2.9 percent.

The national seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for January 2026 is 4.3 percent, down 0.1 percentage points from the December 2025 unemployment rate and up 0.3 percent from the January 2025 unemployment rate. National unemployment rate rankings are available here: National unemployment rate rankings are available here.

Nebraska Labor Market Remain Strong

“Nebraska’s workforce continues to demonstrate resilience,” said Commissioner of Labor Katie Thurber. “Our labor market remains stable, with unemployment holding at 3.0 percent—consistently below the national rate.”

Benchmarking Explained

Benchmarked unemployment refers to an annual update by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) that adjusts previous estimates of jobs and unemployment using confirmed employment records, such as tax filings or reports from employers. Each year, the BLS reviews and updates monthly jobs and unemployment figures with these more accurate records. This ensures the numbers reflect real job-market conditions by comparing earlier estimates to recent, verified data.

Technical Notes

The labor force includes employed individuals and those actively seeking work, as determined by a Census Bureau survey. People may be counted as unemployed regardless of whether they claim unemployment benefits, depending on their survey responses. Those not working or seeking employment are excluded from the labor force and the unemployment rate calculation.

BLS programs, including Current Employment Statistics (CES) and Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), provide monthly labor market data. Figures are revised monthly as new information becomes available, and annual BLS benchmarking may also lead to revisions.

Data Release Schedule

Helpful Links

•          Nebraska Employment Data
•          NEworks Labor Market Information
•          NDOL Press Releases
•          National Rate Rankings