Jobless Rate in Fall River Drops in September

Keith Thibault October 20, 2020 Comments Off on Jobless Rate in Fall River Drops in September

The unemployment rate in Fall River fell in September to 12.6%, down from the August rate of 14.8%.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reports that the labor force in Fall River in September totaled 42,378 employees. 5,351 people were recorded as being unemployed. The 12.6% unemployment rate for September compares to a 4.2% unemployment rate for September of 2019.

Towns surrounding Fall River also saw a drop in their unemployment rates:

  • Somerset, 8.6% (10.4% in August)
  • Swansea, 7.5% (9.0% in August)
  • Westport, 8.7% (10.4% in August)
  • Freetown, 8.3% (9.9% in August)

Gateway Cities across Massachusetts also saw a drop in unemployment for September.

  • New Bedford,13.4% (15.8% rate for August)
  • Taunton, 11.6% in August (14.2% in August)
  • Brockton, 15.1% (17.4% in August)
  • Lowell, 11.5% (13.3%% in August)
  • Lawrence, 20.2% (23.1% in August)

The state unemployment rate for September is 9.5%.  Here is more information from the state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development on the local numbers:

Latest Seasonally Unadjusted Unemployment and Job Estimates for Local Labor Markets in Massachusetts

BOSTON, MA October 20, 2020 — Local unemployment rates decreased in twenty-four labor market areas in the state during the month of September, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported.

Compared to September 2019, the rates were up in twenty-four labor market areas.

Thirteen of the fifteen areas for which job estimates are published recorded job gains in September. The largest gains occurred in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Springfield, Worcester, and Lynn-Saugus-Marblehead areas. The jobs level in the Framingham area remained unchanged over the month while a loss occurred in the Barnstable area.

From September 2019 to September 2020, all fifteen areas lost jobs with the largest percentage losses in the Barnstable, Springfield, Haverhill-Newburyport-Amesbury, Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, and Lawrence-Methuen-Salem areas.

In order to compare the statewide rate to local unemployment rates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the statewide-unadjusted unemployment rate for September was 9.5 percent.

Last week, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported the statewide seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the month of September was 9.6 percent, 1.8 percentage points below the revised August rate of 11.4 percent.

The statewide seasonally adjusted jobs estimate showed a 36,900 job gain in September, and an over-the-year loss of 351,800 jobs.

The unadjusted unemployment rates and job estimates for the labor market areas reflect seasonal fluctuations and therefore may show different levels and trends than the statewide seasonally adjusted estimates.

The estimates for labor force, unemployment rates and jobs for Massachusetts are based on different statistical methodology specified by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

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