University of Arkansas Walton College economist Mervin Jebaraj says the April 2021 Arkansas jobs report is layered with good news. Labor officials reported two weeks ago that Arkansas’ jobless rate in April remained stable at 4. 4% from March and it was dramatically down from the 10% unemployment rate recorded in April 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jebaraj said April was good because it reversed a three-month trend of people.