MA Unemployment Rate Lowest Since 2003

BOSTON, MA — The unemployment rate in Massachusetts has dropped to its lowest since May 2003, according to a Friday morning report from the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development. The state added an estimated 4,600 jobs, dropping November's unemployment rate down one-tenth of a percentage point to 3.4 percent .

Not only is it a more than 15-year low, but it's also a shade lower than the national unemployment rate of 3.7 percent. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said the state added 60,500 jobs between November 2017 and November 2018.

"In addition to the Commonwealth's consistently low unemployment rate, which has held under 4% for 31 consecutive months, Massachusetts has added over 57,000 jobs since the beginning of the year, with the largest share of those gains coming from Professional, Business, and Scientific Services and other key sectors," Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Rosalin Acosta said in a statement.

The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development said 130,000 of the 3,837,000 labor force in Massachusetts were unemployed in November.

The sectors that gained jobs last month included trade, transportation, and utilities; professional, scientific, and business services; education and health services; and information. Financial activities, construction, other services, and manufacturing lost jobs during November.

Reporting from the State House News Service was used in this report

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