At 9.1 percent, Rhode Island's unemployment rate is now the worst in the country, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Rhode Island's unemployment rate is now the worst in the country, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The state's unemployment rate ticked up in December to 9.1 percent, while Nevada's rate dropped to 8.8 percent, according to the BLS.

The two states had been virtually tied with the worst unemployment rate for November, at 9.0 percent, according to the state-by-state numbers released by the BLS, which are rounded to the nearest tenth of a percent.

But after closer inspection of that month's data, a Journal analysis showed that Rhode Island's unemployment rate for November was 8.99 percent while Nevada's was 9.01 percent.

Both states' rates are well above the national rate of 6.7 percent for December.

Elsewhere in New England, according to the BLS, unemployment rates for December were: Connecticut, 7.4 percent; Maine, 6.2 percent; Massachusetts, 7.0 percent; New Hampshire, 5.1 percent; and Vermont, 4.2 percent.

