Business & Tech
Mass. Unemployment Rate Falls to Lowest in Three Years
The Massachusetts unemployment rate last month fell below 7 percent for the first time in three years.
The total Mass. unemployment rate is 6.8 percent, down 0.2 of a percentage point from the November rate of 7.0 percent, and well below the national rate of 8.5 percent, The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reports today. It is the lowest monthly rate since December of 2008.
The preliminary December estimates show a decrease of 6,200 jobs in Massachusetts, for a total of 3,234,500 jobs. Four of the ten private sectors added jobs in December with gains in Trade, Transportation, and Utilities; Manufacturing; Information; and Financial Activities.
Over-the-year (December 2010 to December 2011), 40,700 jobs have been added in the Bay State, a growth rate of 1.3 percent, with 45,600 private sector jobs added for a growth rate of 1.7 percent.
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