R.I. has second-highest unemployment in N.E. in Sept.

THE RHODE ISLAND unemployment growth rate in September was the second-highest in New England, only ahead of Connecticut. / BLOOMBERG FILE PHOTO/LUKE SHARRETT
THE RHODE ISLAND unemployment growth rate in September was the second-highest in New England, only ahead of Connecticut. / BLOOMBERG FILE PHOTO/LUKE SHARRETT

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island’s 3.9 percent unemployment in September was the second-highest in New England, ahead of Connecticut’s 4.2 percent, and 0.2 percentage points higher than the national unemployment rate of 3.7 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday.

Rhode Island’s 0.6 percentage-point unemployment decline year over year was just faster than the 0.5 percentage-point decline for the United States.

New Hampshire had the lowest unemployment rate in New England in September at 2.7 percent, followed by Vermont at 2.9 percent, Maine at 3.3 percent and Massachusetts at 3.6 percent.

The lowest unemployment rate in the country was in Hawaii at 2.2 percent, while Alaska had the highest unemployment rate at 6.5 percent.

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Rhode Island nonfarm employment, seasonally adjusted, increased 1.4 percent year over year in September, to 502,100 workers from 495,100.

The Rhode Island employment growth rate was the third-highest in the region, behind New Hampshire (2.2 percent) and Massachusetts (1.8 percent). Rhode Island employment growth was followed by Connecticut (1.2 percent), Maine (0.7 percent) and Vermont, where employment declined 0.6 percent in September year over year.

Chris Bergenheim is the PBN web editor. Email him at Bergenheim@PBN.com.

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