According to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) provisional estimates, in July 2003 the seasonally adjusted civilian labor force in North Carolina numbered 4,185,400, with approximately 277,900 workers unemployed, yielding an unemployment rate of 6.6%, compared to the national average of 6.2% for the same period. Since the beginning of the BLS data series in 1978, the highest unemployment rate recorded was 10.0% in February 1983. The historical low was 3.0% in June 1999. It is estimated that in 2001, 6.6% of the labor force was employed in construction; 18.6% in manufacturing; 4.7% in transportation, communications, and public utilities; 19.3% in trade; 5.1% in finance, insurance, and real estate; 22.4% in services; 13.7% in government; and 2.5% in agriculture.
North Carolina working conditions have brought the state considerable notoriety over the years. North Carolina is one of 22 states with a right-to-work law, and public officials are legally barred from negotiating a collective bargaining agreement. The US Department of Labor reported that in 2002, 111,000 of North Carolina's 3,427,000 employed wage and salary workers were members of unions. This represented 3.2% of those so employed, down from 3.7% in 2001. The national average is 13.2%. North Carolina has the lowest union membership rate of all the states, a position it has held since the state data series became available. The national average is 13.2%. In all, 138,000 workers (4.0%) were represented by unions. In addition to union members, this category includes workers who report no union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union contract.