![EVEN AS THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FELL across most of the U.S. in July compared with a year earlier, Rhode Island and the Providence-Fall River-Warwick metro area saw increases in the jobless rate from June as well as a decline in the size of the labor force. / COURTESY U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS EVEN AS THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FELL across most of the U.S. in July compared with a year earlier, Rhode Island and the Providence-Fall River-Warwick metro area saw increases in the jobless rate from June as well as a decline in the size of the labor force. / COURTESY U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS](https://assets.pbn.com/uploads/2013/08/1377709158_3602.jpg)
WASHINGTON – Rhode Island and the Providence-Fall River-Warwick metropolitan area each saw unemployment rate declines in July from July 2012, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics non-seasonally adjusted data released Wednesday. In addition, in both cases, the size of the civilian labor force increased slightly.
The picture was a little less positive when looked at from the perspective of June to July change, however, as the jobless rate increased for both regions while the size of the labor force declined significantly.
The BLS reported a non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 9.4 percent for the metro area that reaches into Bristol County, Mass., in July, a decline of 1.5 percentage points from the rate in July 2012. This July’s rate, however, represented an increase from the June 2013 rate of 8.7 percent. The labor force in the region followed the same pattern, increasing by 1,000 to 695,400 in July when compared with July 2012, but declining by 6,200 when compared with June 2013.
Rhode Island’s employment numbers paralleled what was happening in the metro area, with the July jobless rate falling year over year by 1.9 percentage points to 9.2 percent, even as it showed an increase from June’s rate of 8.5 percent (the seasonally adjusted jobless rate for July was 8.9 percent, as reported on PBN.com on Aug. 15). Similarly, the labor force grew slightly (by 600 people) from July 2012 to July 2013 to 559,800, even as it declined from July 2012 by 7,200 people.
The region followed the national jobs picture, as 320 of the 372 metro areas across the United States showed unemployment rates in July that were lower than in July 2012 – with the lowest (Bismarck, N.D.) coming in at 2.5 percent. Thirty-eight metro areas had jobless rates higher than a year ago (Yuma, Ariz., had the highest, 34.5 percent), while 14 regions saw no change in their unemployment rates.
Editor’s note: The U6 unemployment rate mentioned in the comment is defined as: the total unemployed, plus all marginally attached workers, plus total employed part time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers. The non-seasonally adjusted U-6 unemployment rate for the nation in July was 14.3 percent.
For a more detailed analysis of this subject; go to http://www.bls.gov/lau/stalt.htm Scroll down to “Rhode Island ” U6 Unemployment rate; Second Quarter 2013: FIFTEEN POINT NINE PER CENT (15.9%)….