March Jobless Rate Soars

March jobless rate soars Monday, May 5, 2003

Craig M. Douglas Metrowest Daily News

The jobless rate in March reached its highest level in nine years as more than 10,000 people joined the state's unemployment ranks, according to the Massachusetts Division of Employment and Training.
Fueled by a spate of layoffs in the construction and high-tech sectors, the state's unemployment rate stood at 5.7 percent last month, a considerable jump over the 5.4 percent posted in February, the DET reported last week.
Based on the DET's figures, 6,100 jobs disappeared from the state in March with nearly half of those losses stemming from the construction industry. Education and health services saw 1,700 positions vanish, while professional, scientific and business services lost 200 positions.
Compared to the prior year, there were 57,600 fewer jobs in Massachusetts in March. Since January 2001, the state has lost 167,900 jobs.
"These numbers are not of the magnitude we saw at the beginning of the 1990s," said Elliot Weiner, the DET's chief economist. "The question now is whether we will continue to lose jobs in this state. It's hard to tell, but obviously, based on the most recent trends, there's still a ways to go yet."
Weiner said that between December 1988 and December 1992, Massachusetts lost 360,000 jobs.
Although the state has remained below the national unemployment rate for 97 consecutive months, the gap narrowed significantly in March. Currently, the national rate is 5.8 percent.
"We've seen a slight decrease in labor in MetroWest," said Maureen Dunne, an economist at Framingham State College's MetroWest Economic Research Center.
While Dunne has yet to analyze MetroWest's unemployment figures for March, she said February's trends seem to indicate an exodus of labor from the area. Given yesterday's DET numbers, Dunne's concerns for the future seemed warranted.
"People are leaving the state," she said. "I have a concern about the out-migration from Massachusetts. This is a highly trained, highly skilled work force, and they will get jobs in other parts of the country."
At month's end, 195,400 people were considered unemployed in Massachusetts, compared to 3.3 million employed residents.

March jobless rate soars	Monday, May 5, 2003
Craig M. Douglas	Metrowest Daily News
The jobless rate in March reached its highest level in nine years as more than 10,000 people joined the state's unemployment ranks, according to the Massachusetts Division of Employment and Training. Fueled by a spate of layoffs in the construction and high-tech sectors, the state's unemployment rate stood at 5.7 percent last month, a considerable jump over the 5.4 percent posted in February, the DET reported last week. Based on the DET's figures, 6,100 jobs disappeared from the state in March with nearly half of those losses stemming from the construction industry. Education and health services saw 1,700 positions vanish, while professional, scientific and business services lost 200 positions. Compared to the prior year, there were 57,600 fewer jobs in Massachusetts in March. Since January 2001, the state has lost 167,900 jobs. "These numbers are not of the magnitude we saw at the beginning of the 1990s," said Elliot Weiner, the DET's chief economist. "The question now is whether we will continue to lose jobs in this state. It's hard to tell, but obviously, based on the most recent trends, there's still a ways to go yet." Weiner said that between December 1988 and December 1992, Massachusetts lost 360,000 jobs. Although the state has remained below the national unemployment rate for 97 consecutive months, the gap narrowed significantly in March. Currently, the national rate is 5.8 percent. "We've seen a slight decrease in labor in MetroWest," said Maureen Dunne, an economist at Framingham State College's MetroWest Economic Research Center. While Dunne has yet to analyze MetroWest's unemployment figures for March, she said February's trends seem to indicate an exodus of labor from the area. Given yesterday's DET numbers, Dunne's concerns for the future seemed warranted. "People are leaving the state," she said. "I have a concern about the out-migration from Massachusetts. This is a highly trained, highly skilled work force, and they will get jobs in other parts of the country." At month's end, 195,400 people were considered unemployed in Massachusetts, compared to 3.3 million employed residents.

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