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Unemployment in the transportation sector is down from a year ago, but still higher than pre-COVID levels.
The unemployment rate in the U.S. transportation sector was 4.4% (not seasonally adjusted) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
In May 2025, the transportation sector unemployment rate fell 1.1 percentage points from 5.5% in May 2024 but was just above the pre-pandemic May 2019 level of 4.3%. Unemployment in the transportation sector reached its highest level during the COVID-19 pandemic (15.7%) in May 2020 and July 2020.
Unemployment in the transportation sector was higher than overall unemployment. BLS reports that the U.S. unemployment rate, not seasonally adjusted, in May 2025 was 4.0% or 0.4 percentage points below the transportation sector rate. Seasonally adjusted, the U.S. unemployment rate in May 2025 was 4.2%.