by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Weekly unemployment claims fell for the week ending June 15, 2024, as new claims have fallen to their usual summer lows. The Service industry accounts for the vast majority of claims with 55%.
See tables below.
For the week, there were 256 claims, down 22 for the week and 50 fewer than this time last year. Meanwhile, the state unemployment rate remains near historic low levels as employment and the labor force have increased (2.1 percent in April 2024).
Vermont has the third lowest rate in the nation, behind North and South (2.0%) Dakota. California (5.3%) has the highest rate.
The comparable United States rate in April was 3.9 percent, an increase of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised March estimate.
The Vermont civilian labor force participation rate was 65.5 percent in April, an increase of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate.
For new and continuing UI claims, there were a total of 2,280 claims, down 95 from the week before and 36 more than last year.
Nationally, for the week ending June 15, the US Department of Labor's advanced figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims week ending June 15, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 238,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 242,000 to 243,000. The 4-week moving average was 232,750, an increase of 5,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 227,000 to 227,250.
Reuters reports that declining claims and housing starts indicate that the economy is slowing for the second straight quarter, which suggests that the Fed could cut interest rates as early as September and perhaps again in December.
The Vermont Unemployment Trust Fund is well capitalized. As of last week, there was $290.7 million in the Trust Fund, down $937,000 million for the week (as claims are paid out on one side, employers are contributing to the fund on the other). The pre-pandemic Trust Fund balance on March 1, 2020, was $506.2 million.
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