Alabama’s jobless rate remained unchanged at 3.1% for the fourth straight month in January, the state Department of Labor said Monday.

The rate represented 69,141 people without jobs compared to 90,390 in January 2021, when many businesses were trying to return to normal during the COVID-19 pandemic. The state rate was better than then comparable U.S. unemployment rate of 4% in January.

Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington said more than 33,000 jobs were created over the last year and total weekly earnings had increased $30.60.

“While holding steady may not seem like a positive thing to some, given the uncertainties that currently exist in our national economy, I’m proud to say that, so far, Alabama is maintaining positive employment trends,” he said in a statement.

Shelby County in metro Birmingham had the state’s lowest unemployment rate at 2.2%, and rural Wilcox County was worst at 11.2%.