Alexandria’s unemployment rate rose to 3.8% in August, up from 2.8% a year earlier, as the number of jobless residents increased by 35% to 3,793, according to state data released on Wednesday.
The figures from the Virginia Department of Workforce Development and Advancement show 3,793 Alexandria residents were seeking jobs in August, compared to 2,807 unemployed residents in August 2024. Total employment in the city stood at 96,898, down from 99,070 the previous year.
The August 2025 jobless rate was unchanged from a month before, and the number of unemployed declined slightly from 3,904 in July. But it was still the highest level since mid-2024.
The year-over-year increase in unemployed Alexandrians outpaced the 23.8% unemployment increase in Northern Virginia and the 23.1% increase in the D.C. region as a whole, according to figures reported Wednesday by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In August 2025, the unemployment rate was 3.6% across Northern Virginia, up from 3.0% a year prior, and 4.3% metro-wide, up from 3.4%. Statewide, the number of unemployed rose 16.5% year-over-year to 175,560 in August. Virginia’s unemployment rate stood at 3.9%, up from 3.3% the previous year.
All figures represent non-seasonally-adjusted data.
The rising unemployment comes as Alexandria faces mounting economic pressures. Eviction filings in the city jumped 21% this year, reaching 3,738 summonses as of Thursday. Federal downsizing is affecting approximately 13,000 federal employees living in Alexandria, adding pressure to a housing market where 57% of households are renters paying an average of $2,280 for a one-bedroom apartment.
City Manager James Parajon informed the City Council in September that economic uncertainty continues to cloud the local outlook, with commercial office vacancy rates rising to 21.6% in 2025 from 15% in 2023. Parajon cautioned then that federal workforce reductions may not be fully reflected in unemployment data, noting that “these numbers really aren’t indicative of the early buyouts, administrative leave, and the federal layoffs.”
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office laid off approximately 140 employees on Wednesday, about 1% of its roughly 14,000-person workforce, as part of a broader federal workforce restructuring effort. The Alexandria-based agency cut positions across several departments and announced the permanent closure of its Denver regional office.
Unemployment figures for Virginia metro areas are reported a month after being compiled. The August figures were released on the same day the federal government entered a shutdown, as Congress disagreed on a spending plan at the start of the fiscal year. It is the fourth government shutdown over the past decade, with the longest lasting 35 days in 2018-19.
Alexandria officials have mobilized resources to assist residents impacted by the shutdown, with Parajon announcing support services including payment plan assistance for taxpayers, housing support, and basic needs assistance. Virginia law provides legal protections for furloughed federal employees and contractors, allowing them to request 60-day continuances of eviction cases and stays of foreclosure proceedings during government shutdowns.
Related: Neighboring Arlington County saw a 38% year-over-year increase in unemployment, with 5,413 residents seeking jobs in August compared to 3,932 a year earlier, according to ARLnow.
