New England jobless rate 5.9% in August

RHODE ISLAND continues to have the third highest unemployment rate in the nation, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
RHODE ISLAND continues to have the third highest unemployment rate in the nation, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

PROVIDENCE – New England’s unemployment rate was essentially unchanged in August at 5.9 percent, but Rhode Island still had the highest jobless rate among the six states at 7.7 percent.
Rhode Island was singled out in the report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for being among eight states and the District of Columbia with jobless rates significantly higher than the national average of 6.1 percent.
Rhode Island’s unemployment rate is the third highest in the nation. However, it was lower than it was last year at this time by 1.9 percentage points, and was the same as it was in July.
Unemployment rates for the other New England states for August were as follows: Massachusetts, 5.8 percent, two-tenths of a percentage point higher than in July; Connecticut, 6.6 percent, unchanged from July; Maine, 5.6 percent, one-tenth of a percentage point higher; New Hampshire, unchanged at 4.4 percent; and Vermont, 4.1 percent, which represents a four-tenths of a percentage point increase.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ report showed that New England’s rate declined from a year ago, when it was 7.2 percent. August’s rate was slightly higher than July’s 5.8 percent. The national jobless rate was little changed from July at 6.1 percent, but was 1.1 percentage points lower than in August 2013.
Out of the nine geographic divisions, the East South Central division had the highest jobless rate at 7.3 percent. The West North Central division had the lowest at 4.8 percent, and New England was among eight divisions that had statistically significant rate declines from the previous year.

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  1. What about the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have given up trying to find work left the labor force? I’ve seen estimates that with this factored in, the national unemployment rate is around 20%.