For the third quarter of 2019, while Major Metro areas posted jobs growth of 1.2% year over year, rural counties employment grew by only 0.5%.
The gap had vanished at the start of last year, but it is now back to the 0.7% point differential seen in early 2017.
![](http://explistats.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/QCEW_Metro_Growth__Minor_Metros_vs_Rural.gif)