WASHINGTON – Unemployment rates were lower in April than a year earlier in 226 of 369 major metropolitan areas nationwide, higher in 120 and unchanged in 23, according to a report today from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The national unemployment rate in April was 4.3 percent before seasonal adjustment, the BLS noted, down from 4.5 percent a year earlier.
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In the Providence-Fall River-Warwick metro area, the unemployment rate declined to 5.0 percent from March’s 5.2 percent and April 2006’s 5.4 percent. The area’s civilian labor force (based on place of residence) shrank to 706,500 local workers from 708,700 in March and 709,100 in April 2006. The number of payroll jobs (based on work place) increased to 585,200 from March’s 575,400 local jobs but declined 0.1 percent from April 2006’s 585,900 jobs.
In the New Bedford metro area, the unemployment rate declined to 6.1 percent from March’s 7.3 percent and April 2006’s 6.4 percent. The area’s civilian labor force (based on place of residence) shrank to 84,900 workers from March’s 85,700 but remained larger than the year-ago 84,500. The number of payroll jobs in the region (based on work place) decreased to 67,200 local jobs from March’s 67,600 but increased 1.9 percent from the year-ago 67,600 jobs.
The Rhode Island unemployment rate was steady at 4.6 percent, the same as in March but below the April 2006 rate of 5.2 percent. The area’s civilian labor force (based on place of residence) shrank to 572,300 workers from 573,000 in March and 573,600 in April 2006. The number of payroll jobs in the state (based on work place) increased to 496,900 jobs from March’s 488,400 and was 0.6 percent above the year-ago 493,800 local jobs.
The Massachusetts unemployment rate declined to 4.4 percent from the 4.8-percent rate of both March 2007 and April 2006. The commonwealth’s civilian labor force (based on place of residence) shrank to 3.370 million workers from March’s 3.386 million but was almost unchanged from a year earlier. The number of payroll jobs (based on work place) increased to 3.266 million from March’s 3.227 million jobs and was 1.0 percent above April 2006’s 3.234 million Bay State jobs.
Additional information, including the 22-page Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment report, is available at www.bls.gov.
