Connecticut added 2,100 jobs in November, helping the state”™s unemployment rate fall to 4.7 percent ”“ the lowest rate it”™s been since October 2007, according to the state Department of Labor. The agency also revised data on October 2016 job losses, which had been reported as 7,200; the Labor Department now says that 5,800 jobs were lost that month.
The November unemployment rate of 4.7 percent is a 0.4 percent improvement over October”™s, and a 0.7 percent improvement over November 2015”™s. The number of unemployed fell by 9,500 last month, the DOL said. The U.S. unemployment rate in November was 4.6 percent.
“Connecticut”™s rapidly declining unemployment rate is welcome news,” said Andy Condon, director of the state”™s Office of Research. “However, recent months of payroll job counts may indicate a significant slowing of the state”™s job growth. While there are circumstances, such as demographic shifts, increased self-employment and growing out-of- state commuting, where these two movements can happen at the same time, we do not yet have data to support a definitive trend.”
Connecticut has now recovered 72 percent (85,700) of the 119,100 seasonally adjusted jobs lost in the Great Recession, and needs an additional 33,400 jobs to reach an employment expansion. The state”™s private sector has recovered 86.7 percent (96,800) of the 111,700 private sector jobs lost in that same employment downturn.
The Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk labor market area lost 1,100 jobs in November, a 0.3 percent decline from October, to total 408,000 jobs.
