Report: Population Changes Make Cranston Unemployment Look Worse than Warwick

Cranston's unemployment rate for March is 1.4 percent higher than its neighbor Warwick, but, according to an analysis by the Ocean State Current, population changes between 2000 and 2010 seem to slightly exaggerate the difference.

The reality? Warwick isn't doing all that much better than Cranston during this painful period of sustained high unemployment, the Current's analysis suggests. Both cities, which are often compared together because of population and economic similarities, are doing better than the state average. But it's hard to say anyone is doing that great when the state average is about four points higher than the national average.

According to the OSC report, Warwick lost population and its labor force increased by a mere .6 percent. In Cranston, population went up 1.4 percent and the labor force expanded by 6.2 percent.

"So, even though the city’s number of employed residents fell less (2.3%) its unemployment rate grew much more quickly," Justin Katz writes. "Of course, that shouldn’t by any means be taken to indicate that Cranston is doing well. . .the city’s labor force is well above its 22-year average, while its number of employed residents is well below.  Consequently, its number of unemployed residents is only 11 percent below the record set in various months of 2010."

Click here to continue to The Ocean State Current, who break down the numbers more. The site has reports on other cities and towns as well.