by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor released data on the Vermont economy for the time period covering December 2023. According to household data, the seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment rate for December was 2.2 percent. This reflects an increase of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. The civilian labor force participation rate was 64.6 percent in December, an increase of two-tenths of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. 

Along with Labor Force, the total Employed increased, while the total Unemployed rose slightly. The unemployment rate hike was largely due to an increase in the Labor Force, which is the denominator in the calculation. 

Vermont has the fourth lowest rate in the nation, with Maryland and North Dakota tied at 1.9 percent and Nevada highest at 5.4 percent.

Meanwhile, for the week ending January 13, weekly unemployment claims have been elevated in recent weeks with the usual holiday hiring and firing of seasonal workers. Initial claims last week were 609, 143 higher than the previous week and 69 more than the same time last year.

Nationally, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 187,000, a decrease of 16,000 from the previous week's revised level. This is the lowest level for initial claims since September 24, 2022 when it was 182,000. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 202,000 to 203,000. The 4-week moving average was 203,250, a decrease of 4,750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 207,750 to 208,000.

See data tables below.

Michael Harrington, Vermont Labor Commissioner, said: “Though the 2023 numbers are preliminary and subject to revision, the survey of Vermont households shows a growing labor force, more people working, and fewer unemployed Vermonters. In the past year, the Vermont economy has grown by nearly 11,000 employed people and seen a decline in the number of unemployed persons by over 2,600. For the unemployed population, this is a decline of 25% since December 2022. The near-term outlook predicts these trends to continue as Vermont employers seek to fill an estimated 19,000 open jobs. The Department partners with both employers and job seekers to make employment matches. To learn more about services for either employers or job seekers, contact the Vermont Department of Labor’s Workforce Development Division at 802-828-4394 or visit our website https://labor.vermont.gov.”

The comparable United States rate in December was 3.7 percent, no change from the revised November estimate. 

The seasonally adjusted Vermont data for December show the Vermont civilian labor force increased by 1,005 from the prior month’s revised estimate (see Table 1). The number of employed persons increased by 810 and the number of unemployed persons increased by 195. The change to the labor force was statistically significant in the seasonally adjusted series.

The December unemployment rates for Vermont’s 17 labor market areas ranged from 1.5 percent in Woodstock to 3.3 percent in Derby (note: local labor market area unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted – see Table 2). For comparison, the December unadjusted unemployment rate for Vermont was 2.0 percent, no change from the revised unadjusted November level and a decrease of seven-tenths of one percentage point from a year ago. 

Seasonally Adjusted (Table 3)

The seasonally adjusted data for December reported a decrease of 1,800 jobs from the revised November data. There was no change between the preliminary and the revised November estimates. The seasonally adjusted over-the-month changes in December varied at the industry level. The industry with a notable increase was Construction (+200 jobs or +1.3%). Industries with a notable decrease included: Accommodation & Food Services (-1,100 jobs or -3.7%) and Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (-200 jobs or -2.4%).

Not-Seasonally-Adjusted (Table 4)

The preliminary ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ jobs estimates for December showed an increase of 400 jobs when compared to the revised November numbers. As with the seasonally adjusted data, this over-the-month change is from the revised November numbers which experienced an increase of 200 jobs from the preliminary estimates. The broader economic picture can be seen by focusing on the over-the-year changes in this data series. As detailed in the preliminary not-seasonally-adjusted December data, Total Private industries decreased by 2,200 jobs (-0.9%) over the year and Government (including public education) employment increased by 2,700 jobs (+4.9%) in the past year.

The Unemployment and Jobs Report for January is scheduled to be released on Monday, March 11, 2024 at 10:00 a.m.

Unemployment Rates for States

Last Modified Date: January 23, 2024