With an unemployment rate of only 4.9 percent, St. Tammany Parish has the lowest unemployment rate in the state, according to the report on preliminary figures for December 2009.

Unemployment across the state is at 7.2 percent while the nation is about twice that of the parish at 9.7 percent.

The December figure shows a slight increase from November’s 4.5 percent, but still only a slight increase from December 2008’s 4.2 percent. The number of employed workers in the parish decreased from 113,313 in November to 111,398 with unemployed workers increasing from 5,307 to 5,724 in the same period.

Nationally, the rate increased from 9.4 in November to 9.7 percent in December with a increase from 7.1 percent over a year ago.

The state, ranked 14th lowest in the country, also experienced a rise in unemployment from a year ago from 5.6 percent in December 2008 to 6.4 percent in November 2009 and then 7.2 in December.

Neighboring parishes are not doing as well as St. Tammany. Washington Parish is near the national average with 9.4 percent in December, an increase from 8.6 percent in November.

Unemployment figures in December for other area parishes include Tangipahoa, 8.2 percent; Jefferson, 6.2 percent; Orleans, 9.5 percent; Plaquemines, 5.9 percent; St. Bernard, 9.8 percent; St. Charles, 6.2 percent; St. John the Baptist, 8.7 percent; and Livingston 7.0 percent.

Lafourche parish had the second lowest rate in the state with 5.0 percent, followed by third-ranked Terrebonne parish with 5.3 percent. The highest unemployment in the state was in West Carroll Parish with 18.6 percent, followed by Morehouse Parish, 15.2 percent and East Carroll Parish with 14.2 percent.

The New Orleans metropolitan statistical area (MSA), which includes St. Tammany Parish, also led the state with an increase in the number of nonfarm jobs over the month at 1,500.