The Unemployment Rate in Fall River Drops in April

Keith Thibault May 21, 2024 Comments Off on The Unemployment Rate in Fall River Drops in April

The unemployment rate in the City of Fall River in April fell to 5.2%, up from 6.3% in March.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reports that the labor force in Fall River in April totaled 41,199 employees. 2,134 people were recorded as unemployed. The 5.2% unemployment rate for April compares to the 5.0% unemployment rate for April 2023.

Here are the rates of communities surrounding Fall River:

Somerset, 3.3% (4.1% in March)
Swansea, 3.0% (3.6% in March)
Westport, 3.7% (4.6% in March)
Freetown, 3.4% (3.9% in March)

Here are the rates in select Gateway Cities across Eastern Massachusetts last month:

New Bedford, 5.0% (5.9% in March)
Taunton, 3.9% (4.4% in March)
Brockton, 4.3% (4.7% in March)
Lowell, 3.8% (4.2% in March)
Lawrence, 6.0% (6.4% in March)

The state unemployment rate for April was unchanged at 2.9%. Here is more information from the state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development:

From the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development

BOSTON, MA May 21, 2024 — Local unemployment rates decreased in all twenty-four labor market areas in the state during the month of April 2024 compared to March 2024, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported.

Compared to April 2023, the rates were up in twenty of twenty-four labor market areas.

Of the fifteen areas for which employment estimates are published, all fifteen NECTA areas gained jobs compared to the previous month. The largest percentage increases occurred in the Barnstable Town (+2.8%), Pittsfield (+1.5%), and New Bedford (+1.2%) areas.

From April 2023 to April 2024, eight areas gained jobs with the largest percentage increases seen in the Barnstable Town (+3.9%), Pittsfield (+2.3%), and Lynn-Saugus-Marblehead (+1.6%) areas.

The statewide seasonally adjusted preliminary jobs estimate showed a decrease of -500 jobs in April, and an over-the-year gain of 21,800 jobs.

In order to compare the statewide rate to local unemployment rates, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the statewide unadjusted unemployment rate for April 2024 was 3.1%, down 0.4 percentage points from the revised March 2024 estimate and was the 0.4 percentage points below the nation’s unadjusted unemployment rate of 3.5%.

Last week, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported the statewide seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the month of April 2024 was 2.9%, unchanged compared to the revised March 2024 estimate. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the nation’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for March 2024 increased by 0.1 percentage point over-the-month to 3.9%.

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 methodologies specified by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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