Vermont Business Magazine All three broad-based measures fell in July's unemployment report, as the number of those looking for work declined in Vermont, but so too did the labor force and total employed, both for the month and year-to-year. The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for July was 3.1 percent. This reflects a decline of one tenth of one percentage point from the revised June rate (3.2 percent). The national rate in July was 4.3 percent. As of the prior month’s preliminary data, the Burlington-South Burlington Metropolitan NECTA was tied for the thirteenth lowest unemployment rate in the country for all metropolitan areas at 2.6 percent (not-seasonally-adjusted). Overall, Vermont’s unemployment rate was tied for the tenth lowest in the country for the same time period.
“Job gains in professional and business services, education and health care, and leisure and hospitality drive the current employment outlook in Vermont,” said Lindsay Kurrle, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor. “Despite some over the year losses in construction and manufacturing employment, we see steady job growth and low unemployment continuing throughout 2017 as the private sector continues to propel economic growth in the State of Vermont.”
The Vermont seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate declined one tenth of one percentage point in July to a statewide average of 3.1 percent. The comparable United States rate is 4.3 percent which experienced a one-tenth of one percentage point decrease from the revised June estimate. The seasonally-adjusted Vermont data for July show the Vermont civilian labor force decreased by 950 from the prior month’s revised estimate. The number of employed decreased by 700 and the number of unemployed decreased by 250. None of the changes were statistically significant in the seasonally-adjusted series. The July unemployment rates for Vermont’s 17 labor market areas ranged from 2.4 percent in White River Junction to 4.4 percent in Bennington and Derby (note: local labor market area unemployment rates are not seasonally-adjusted). For comparison, the July unadjusted unemployment rate for Vermont was 3.0 percent which reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised unadjusted June level and a decrease of four-tenths of one percentage point from a year ago.
Not-Seasonally-Adjusted The preliminary ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ jobs estimates for July show a decrease of 3,300 jobs when compared to the revised June numbers. There was an increase of 200 jobs between the preliminary and the revised June estimates due to the inclusion of more data. The monthly increase seen in the July numbers was primarily attributable to seasonal movements in local government education. The broader economic trends can be detected by focusing on the over-the-year changes in this data series. As detailed in the preliminary ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ July data, Total Private industries have increased by 2,800 jobs (1.1 percent) and Government (including public education) employment has decreased by 1,600 jobs (-3.3 percent) in the past year. Seasonally-Adjusted The seasonally-adjusted data for July reports an increase of 1,700 jobs from the revised June data. As with the ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ data, this over-the-month change is from the revised June numbers which experienced an increase of 200 jobs from the preliminary estimates. The seasonally-adjusted over-the-month changes in July were mixed at the sub-sector level. Those with a notable percent increase include: Leisure and Hospitality (+1,000 jobs or +2.7%) and Education and Health Services (+1,200 jobs or +1.8%). Sectors with a notable percent decrease include: Mining, Logging and Construction (-600 jobs or -3.7%) and Other Services (-200 jobs or -1.8%).
