Vermont’s jobless rate fell to 3.2 percent in November after staying level for three months.
Vermont was one of 18 states whose unemployment rates declined between October and November, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and one of 11 states whose unemployment rates declined from November 2015 to the same month this year.
The only states with lower rates are Utah (3.1 percent), Hawaii (3 percent), Massachusetts (2.9 percent), North Dakota (2.9 percent), New Hampshire (2.7 percent) and South Dakota (2.7 percent).
In Vermont, the lowest regional unemployment rates, which are not seasonally adjusted, were in the Burlington area (2.3 percent) and White River Junction (2.3 percent). The highest were in Derby (4.3 percent) and Waterbury (3.8 percent).
“The Vermont economy is more stable than the month-to-month data might suggest, as increases and declines are ironed out at the conclusion of the year,” Labor Commissioner Annie Noonan said in a news release.
“What we can see is a slower rate of job gains this year than in recent years,” Noonan said. “Yet, with Vermont’s low unemployment rate, it’s still a tight labor market with recruitment and retention challenges for our employers; and a limited availability of workers can adversely impact economic expansion and growth.”
The Public Assets Institute, a liberal think tank, highlighted a decrease of more than 1,000 jobs since January. However, the number of Vermonters employed with firms or self-employed has held steady throughout the year, the think tank said.
