Data / Rankings / Job destruction rate / Counties in Tennessee

Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate

Smith County had the highest job destruction rate of 95 counties in 2017, at 21.75%. Pickett County had the lowest, at 5.444%. The median was 10.47% and the figure for Tennessee was 11.552%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest21.75Smith County
Lowest5.444Pickett County
Median10.4795 counties
Tennessee11.552History

Map of counties, 2017

Anderson County: 9.082 %Bedford County: 8.813 %Benton County: 11.585 %Bledsoe County: 9.788 %Blount County: 10.963 %Bradley County: 9.884 %Campbell County: 15.882 %Cannon County: 11.475 %Carroll County: 17.434 %Carter County: 10.652 %Cheatham County: 11.743 %Chester County: 10.823 %Claiborne County: 8.461 %Clay County: 11.666 %Cocke County: 8.276 %Coffee County: 17.171 %Crockett County: 10.655 %Cumberland County: 10.47 %Davidson County: 14.696 %Decatur County: 6.537 %DeKalb County: 14.302 %Dickson County: 11.732 %Dyer County: 10.231 %Fayette County: 11.924 %Fentress County: 8.515 %Franklin County: 9.256 %Gibson County: 13.026 %Giles County: 9.393 %Grainger County: 13.587 %Greene County: 11.441 %Grundy County: 14.848 %Hamblen County: 10.194 %Hamilton County: 9.065 %Hancock County: 13.407 %Hardeman County: 7.27 %Hardin County: 7.817 %Hawkins County: 9.033 %Haywood County: 13.863 %Henderson County: 11.553 %Henry County: 9.183 %Hickman County: 11.605 %Houston County: 10.073 %Humphreys County: 9.32 %Jackson County: 18.989 %Jefferson County: 10.041 %Johnson County: 7.673 %Knox County: 11.599 %Lake County: 13.108 %Lauderdale County: 6.867 %Lawrence County: 9.104 %Lewis County: 11.659 %Lincoln County: 11.314 %Loudon County: 11.043 %McMinn County: 8.332 %McNairy County: 15.326 %Macon County: 13.05 %Madison County: 7.803 %Marion County: 10.028 %Marshall County: 9.575 %Maury County: 13.02 %Meigs County: 9.805 %Monroe County: 8.503 %Montgomery County: 9.386 %Moore County: 10.677 %Morgan County: 12.565 %Obion County: 11.652 %Overton County: 7.103 %Perry County: 6.972 %Pickett County: 5.444 %Polk County: 14.454 %Putnam County: 8.35 %Rhea County: 6.209 %Roane County: 13.461 %Robertson County: 9.044 %Rutherford County: 10.848 %Scott County: 11.504 %Sequatchie County: 9.489 %Sevier County: 12.402 %Shelby County: 12.095 %Smith County: 21.75 %Stewart County: 9.943 %Sullivan County: 9.216 %Sumner County: 13.243 %Tipton County: 9.507 %Trousdale County: 5.607 %Unicoi County: 6.603 %Union County: 9.856 %Van Buren County: 17.769 %Warren County: 10.25 %Washington County: 13.396 %Wayne County: 9.586 %Weakley County: 9.506 %White County: 17.025 %Williamson County: 11.018 %Wilson County: 10.307 %
  • Under 8.5
  • 8.5 to 9.5
  • 9.5 to 10
  • 10 to 12
  • 12 to 13
  • 13 and over
%, 2017. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2017

Smith County: 21.75 %Smith County21.75Jackson County: 18.989 %Jackson County18.989Van Buren County: 17.769 %Van Buren County17.769Carroll County: 17.434 %Carroll County17.434Coffee County: 17.171 %Coffee County17.171White County: 17.025 %White County17.025Campbell County: 15.882 %Campbell County15.882McNairy County: 15.326 %McNairy County15.326Grundy County: 14.848 %Grundy County14.848Davidson County: 14.696 %Davidson County14.696Polk County: 14.454 %Polk County14.454DeKalb County: 14.302 %DeKalb County14.302Haywood County: 13.863 %Haywood County13.863Grainger County: 13.587 %Grainger County13.587Roane County: 13.461 %Roane County13.461Hancock County: 13.407 %Hancock County13.407Washington County: 13.396 %Washington County13.396Sumner County: 13.243 %Sumner County13.243Lake County: 13.108 %Lake County13.108Macon County: 13.05 %Macon County13.05Gibson County: 13.026 %Gibson County13.026Maury County: 13.02 %Maury County13.02Morgan County: 12.565 %Morgan County12.565Sevier County: 12.402 %Sevier County12.402Shelby County: 12.095 %Shelby County12.095Fayette County: 11.924 %Fayette County11.924Cheatham County: 11.743 %Cheatham County11.743Dickson County: 11.732 %Dickson County11.732Clay County: 11.666 %Clay County11.666Lewis County: 11.659 %Lewis County11.659Obion County: 11.652 %Obion County11.652Hickman County: 11.605 %Hickman County11.605Knox County: 11.599 %Knox County11.599Benton County: 11.585 %Benton County11.585Henderson County: 11.553 %Henderson County11.553Scott County: 11.504 %Scott County11.504Cannon County: 11.475 %Cannon County11.475Greene County: 11.441 %Greene County11.441Lincoln County: 11.314 %Lincoln County11.314Loudon County: 11.043 %Loudon County11.043Smith County: 21.75 %Smith County21.75Jackson County: 18.989 %Jackson County18.989Van Buren County: 17.769 %Van Buren County17.769Carroll County: 17.434 %Carroll County17.434Coffee County: 17.171 %Coffee County17.171White County: 17.025 %White County17.025Campbell County: 15.882 %Campbell County15.882McNairy County: 15.326 %McNairy County15.326Grundy County: 14.848 %Grundy County14.848Davidson County: 14.696 %Davidson County14.696Polk County: 14.454 %Polk County14.454DeKalb County: 14.302 %DeKalb County14.302Haywood County: 13.863 %Haywood County13.863Grainger County: 13.587 %Grainger County13.587Roane County: 13.461 %Roane County13.461Hancock County: 13.407 %Hancock County13.407Washington County: 13.396 %Washington County13.396Sumner County: 13.243 %Sumner County13.243Lake County: 13.108 %Lake County13.108Macon County: 13.05 %Macon County13.05Gibson County: 13.026 %Gibson County13.026Maury County: 13.02 %Maury County13.02Morgan County: 12.565 %Morgan County12.565Sevier County: 12.402 %Sevier County12.402Shelby County: 12.095 %Shelby County12.095Fayette County: 11.924 %Fayette County11.924Cheatham County: 11.743 %Cheatham County11.743Dickson County: 11.732 %Dickson County11.732Clay County: 11.666 %Clay County11.666Lewis County: 11.659 %Lewis County11.659Obion County: 11.652 %Obion County11.652Hickman County: 11.605 %Hickman County11.605Knox County: 11.599 %Knox County11.599Benton County: 11.585 %Benton County11.585Henderson County: 11.553 %Henderson County11.553Scott County: 11.504 %Scott County11.504Cannon County: 11.475 %Cannon County11.475Greene County: 11.441 %Greene County11.441Lincoln County: 11.314 %Lincoln County11.314Loudon County: 11.043 %Loudon County11.043
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Smith County21.75+9.06 pts
2Jackson County18.989+3.75 pts
3Van Buren County17.769+13.43 pts
4Carroll County17.434+10.72 pts
5Coffee County17.171+6.37 pts
6White County17.025+5.61 pts
7Campbell County15.882+8.06 pts
8McNairy County15.326+8.52 pts
9Grundy County14.848-0.58 pts
10Davidson County14.696+4.99 pts
11Polk County14.454-5.05 pts
12DeKalb County14.302+2.13 pts
13Haywood County13.863-4.08 pts
14Grainger County13.587+7.4 pts
15Roane County13.461+5.35 pts
16Hancock County13.407+5.97 pts
17Washington County13.396+5.41 pts
18Sumner County13.243+3.29 pts
19Lake County13.108+3.63 pts
20Macon County13.05+1.88 pts
21Gibson County13.026+4.82 pts
22Maury County13.02+4.17 pts
23Morgan County12.565+2.63 pts
24Sevier County12.402+3.92 pts
25Shelby County12.095+2.74 pts
26Fayette County11.924+3.3 pts
27Cheatham County11.743-0.43 pts
28Dickson County11.732+2.94 pts
29Clay County11.666+0.72 pts
30Lewis County11.659+1.53 pts
31Obion County11.652+3.55 pts
32Hickman County11.605+3.49 pts
33Knox County11.599+2.23 pts
34Benton County11.585-1.19 pts
35Henderson County11.553+2.46 pts
36Scott County11.504+5 pts
37Cannon County11.475-14.83 pts
38Greene County11.441+5.22 pts
39Lincoln County11.314+4.11 pts
40Loudon County11.043+0.74 pts
41Williamson County11.018-0.34 pts
42Blount County10.963+1.38 pts
43Rutherford County10.848+3.98 pts
44Chester County10.823+1.21 pts
45Moore County10.677+4.69 pts
46Crockett County10.655+3.08 pts
47Carter County10.652+2.47 pts
48Cumberland County10.47+2.82 pts
49Wilson County10.307+0.29 pts
50Warren County10.25+0.62 pts
51Dyer County10.231+2.6 pts
52Hamblen County10.194+0.76 pts
53Houston County10.073+2.31 pts
54Jefferson County10.041+4.16 pts
55Marion County10.028+2.06 pts
56Stewart County9.943-0.24 pts
57Bradley County9.884+0.88 pts
58Union County9.856+3.31 pts
59Meigs County9.805-1.11 pts
60Bledsoe County9.788-1.38 pts
61Wayne County9.586-1.84 pts
62Marshall County9.575-0.75 pts
63Tipton County9.507-1.09 pts
64Weakley County9.506+0.26 pts
65Sequatchie County9.489-0.02 pts
66Giles County9.393+3.11 pts
67Montgomery County9.386+0.49 pts
68Humphreys County9.32-6.99 pts
69Franklin County9.256+1.23 pts
70Sullivan County9.216-4.2 pts
71Henry County9.183+0.4 pts
72Lawrence County9.104-0.98 pts
73Anderson County9.082+2.05 pts
74Hamilton County9.065-1.12 pts
75Robertson County9.044+0.25 pts
76Hawkins County9.033+1.2 pts
77Bedford County8.813+3.87 pts
78Fentress County8.515-19.12 pts
79Monroe County8.503+0.5 pts
80Claiborne County8.461+2.95 pts
81Putnam County8.35+1.08 pts
82McMinn County8.332-1.09 pts
83Cocke County8.276+0.12 pts
84Hardin County7.817-0.79 pts
85Madison County7.803-0.52 pts
86Johnson County7.673+2.63 pts
87Hardeman County7.27+2.39 pts
88Overton County7.103-2.11 pts
89Perry County6.972-2.36 pts
90Lauderdale County6.867-4.15 pts
91Unicoi County6.603-2.79 pts
92Decatur County6.537-3.63 pts
93Rhea County6.209-5.04 pts
94Trousdale County5.607-3.04 pts
95Pickett County5.444-4.99 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Jobs lost at closing and shrinking establishments during the year, as a percentage of average employment in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

A gross flow: jobs added elsewhere are not subtracted, so the net change is job_creation_rate minus this rate. Not a layoff rate: it counts positions lost at establishments, not people who lost a job. The year is the twelve months to March: 2023 compares March 2022 with March 2023.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2025). Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate, 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate, 2017. U.S. Census Bureau, 25 Sept. 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate, 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate, 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_tennessee_by_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate, 2017}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2017. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Tennessee by job destruction rate, 2017
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/09/25
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/tennessee-counties?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest job destruction rate?

Smith County, with 21.75% in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Pickett County, with 5.444% in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Job destruction rate: other rankings

Counties in Tennessee: more rankings