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State jobless rates weren't released at their regularly scheduled time because of the ongoing federal government shutdown.
The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development in a press release blamed "a temporary funding lapse" for the state's September unemployment rates being delayed. A spokesman later confirmed that the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics could not provide the underlying data to calculate the state rate due to the shutdown.
Monday, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry confirmed that the unemployment data release will be delayed here, as well.
"The federal government shutdown has delayed the release of Pennsylvania's September 2025 jobs report, which was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 17. Like other states, Pennsylvania relies on coordination from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS); therefore, as the shutdown continues, employment and labor force data for the nation, states, and local areas will remain unavailable," said Danielle Woods, the Labor and Industry spokeswoman.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics posted that its website was not being maintained during the shutdown. The last update came on Oct. 1.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., sent a letter to President Donald Trump's administration on Thursday calling for September unemployment figures to be released before the Federal Reserve meets later this month to consider changes in the interest rate.
Troubling undercurrents
Warren noted that agency employees had been recalled from furlough to prepare the month's Consumer Price Index report. While the senator said she supported the Office of Management and Budget's decision to bring back workers to put together the inflation report, she said she was "deeply concerned" the same wasn't being done for the jobless numbers.
"The American people, financial markets, policymakers, and the Federal Reserve all depend on transparent, timely access to accurate economic data, and without such data, the entire economy is at risk," she wrote. "The Trump Administration must act accordingly and ensure that all of this data is released in a timely fashion."
Warren is the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.