NEWS RELEASE. For Immediate Release Contact: Mathew Barewicz, (802) Vermont Unemployment Rate Holds at 2.9 percent in November

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1 NEWS RELEASE For Immediate Release Contact: Mathew Barewicz, (802) December 22, 2017 Vermont Unemployment Rate Holds at 2.9 percent in November The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for November was 2.9 percent. This reflects no change from the revised October rate. The national rate in November was 4.1 percent. As of the prior month s preliminary data, the Burlington-South Burlington Metropolitan NECTA was tied for the ninth lowest unemployment rate in the country for all metropolitan areas. Overall, Vermont s unemployment rate was tied for the sixth lowest in the country for the same time period. Commissioner s Message The November numbers show the winter tourism season in Vermont is off to a strong start. Thanks to some early winter-like weather, many mountain-based employers were able to open early enough in November to be captured by the monthly jobs survey. Winter tourism creates a lot of economic activity across the state. If you are interested in finding work either on a mountain or in your local town, the Vermont Department of Labor can assist all individuals with their job search. Vermont employers are recruiting at all skill levels, said Lindsay Kurrle, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor. Chart 1. Unemployment Rate, seasonally adjusted Percent United States New England Vermont Chart 2. Vermont Nonfarm Payroll Employment Thousands Unadjusted Seasonally Adjusted 0.0 Nov-15 Feb-16 May-16 Aug-16 Nov-16 Feb-17 May-17 Aug-17 Nov Nov-15 Feb-16 May-16 Aug-16 Nov-16 Feb-17 May-17 Aug-17 Nov-17 [-

2 State of Vermont Overview The Vermont seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for November remains unchanged from the revised October statewide average of 2.9 percent. The comparable United States rate is 4.1 percent which was also unchanged from the revised October estimate. The seasonally-adjusted Vermont data for November show the Vermont civilian labor force increased by 450 from the prior month s revised estimate. The number of employed persons increased by 550 and the number of unemployed persons decreased by 100. The changes were not statistically significant in the seasonally-adjusted series. The November unemployment rates for Vermont s 17 labor market areas ranged from 2.0 percent in White River Junction to 4.1 percent in Derby (note: local labor market area unemployment rates are not seasonally-adjusted). For comparison, the November unadjusted unemployment rate for Vermont was 2.7 percent which reflects an increase of four-tenths of one percentage point from the revised unadjusted October level and a decrease of two-tenths of one percentage point from a year ago. Analysis of Job Changes by Industry Not-Seasonally-Adjusted The preliminary not-seasonally-adjusted jobs estimates for November show an increase of 400 jobs when compared to the revised October numbers. There was a decrease of 400 jobs between the preliminary and the revised October estimates due to the inclusion of more data. The monthly increase seen in the November numbers was primarily attributable to seasonal movements in leisure and hospitality related industries. The broader economic trends can be detected by focusing on the over-the-year changes in this data series. As detailed in the preliminary not-seasonallyadjusted November data, Total Private industries have increased by 4,900 jobs (1.9 percent) and Government (including public education) employment has decreased by 100 jobs (-0.2 percent) in the past year. Seasonally-Adjusted The seasonally-adjusted data for November reports an increase of 900 jobs from the revised October data. As with the not-seasonally-adjusted data, this over-the-month change is from the revised October numbers which experienced a decrease of 400 jobs from the preliminary estimates. The seasonally-adjusted over-the-month changes in November were mixed at the sector level. Those with a notable percent increase include: Mining & Logging (+100 jobs or 12.5%), Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (+300 jobs or +5.9%) and Accommodation & Food Services (+1,800 jobs or +5.4%). Sectors with a notable percent decrease include: Real Estate, Rental & Leasing (-100 jobs or -3.4%), Construction (-500 jobs or -3.2%) and Private Educational Services (-200 jobs or - 1.4%). The Unemployment and Jobs Report for December is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, January 23, 2018 at 10:00 a.m.

3 Table 1. Vermont Labor Force Estimates, seasonally adjusted Change From: November October November October November Civilian Labor Force 345, , , Employed 335, , , ,500 Unemployed 9,950 10,050 10, ,000 Unemployment Rate (%) Vermont s labor force, employment and unemployment statistics are produced from a combination of a Statewide survey of households and statistical modeling. The data are produced by the Local Area Unemployment Statistics Program (LAUS), a cooperative program with the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics ( and the Vermont Department of Labor ( Table 2. Vermont Labor Market Areas, Labor Force Estimates not seasonally adjusted November 2017 Unemployment Rate² (%) Labor Market Area ¹ Civilian Labor Force Employed Unemployed Nov-17 Oct-17 Nov-16 Vermont Total 344, ,750 9, Barre-Montpelier 26,050 25, Bennington 11,150 10, Brattleboro 22,000 21, Burlington-South Burlington 125, ,050 2, Derby 12,850 12, Highgate 10,200 9, Manchester 11,350 11, Middlebury 18,700 18, Morristown-Waterbury 17,450 16, Newbury 2,900 2, Northfield-Waitsfield 6,900 6, Randolph 7,350 7, Rutland 21,450 20, Springfield 10,600 10, St. Johnsbury 13,200 12, White River Junction 19,900 19, Woodstock 4,000 3, The area names above are common language titles; for official names of areas including encompassing cities and towns please refer to the Vermont Labor Market Area map ( 2 Rate is unrounded estimate for number of unemployed divided by total labor force, expressed as a percent. Source: Local Area Unemployment Statistics Program (LAUS) produced by the Vermont Department of Labor ( in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (

4 Table 3. Vermont Nonfarm Payroll Employment, seasonally adjusted (thousands) NAICS Industry Nov-17 Oct-17 Nov-16 Change From: % Change From: Prelim Revised Revised Oct-17 Nov-16 Oct-17 Nov-16 Statewide, Total Nonfarm¹ Total Private Mining, Logging and Construction Mining & Logging Construction Manufacturing Durable Goods Non-Durable Goods Trade, Transportation and Utilities Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Trans., Warehousing & Utilities Financial Activities Finance & Insurance Real Estate, Rental & Leasing Professional and Business Services Professional & Technical Services Administrative & Waste Services Education and Health Services Private Educational Services Health Care & Social Assistance Leisure and Hospitality Arts, Entertainment & Recreation Accommodation & Food Services Other Services Government Federal State Local Burlington-S. Burlington Metro (NECTA) Total Nonfarm ¹Statewide Total Nonfarm is a summed total of major industries. The NAICS industry Information is not published seasonally adjusted because the seasonal component, which is small relative to the trend-cycle and irregular components, cannot be separated with sufficient precision. Source: Current Employment Statistics Program (CES) produced by the Economic and Labor Market Information Division, Vermont Department of Labor ( in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics ( Estimates are preliminary and subject to revision. See Annual Summary for details.

5 Table 4. Vermont Nonfarm Payroll Employment, not seasonally adjusted NAICS Industry Nov-17 Oct-17 Nov-16 Change From: % Change From: Prelim Revised Revised Oct-17 Nov-16 Oct-17 Nov-16 TOTAL NONFARM 320, , , , TOTAL PRIVATE 262, , , , GOODS-PRODUCING 46,100 46,500 45, MINING, LOGGING AND CONSTRUCTION 17,000 17,600 16, Mining & Logging Construction 16,100 16,700 15, MANUFACTURING 29,100 28,900 29, Durable Goods 1 17,900 17,700 18, Non-Durable Goods 11,200 11,200 11, Food Mfg. 5,500 5,400 5, SERVICE-PROVIDING 274, , , , TRADE, TRANSPORTATION AND UTILITES 56,400 55,800 56, Wholesale Trade 9,400 9,400 9, Retail Trade 38,400 38,000 38, Food & Beverage Stores 10,000 10,000 10, General Merchandise Stores 3,400 3,300 3, Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities 8,600 8,400 8, Transportation & Warehousing 7,400 7,200 7, Utilities 1,200 1,200 1, INFORMATION 4,400 4,500 4, FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES 11,900 11,900 11, Finance & Insurance 9,100 9,000 9, Real Estate, Rental & Leasing 2,800 2,900 2, PROFESSIONAL AND BUSINESS SERVICES 28,800 29,500 27, , Professional & Technical Services 14,600 14,700 14, Administrative & Waste Services 12,100 12,600 10, , EDUCATION AND HEALTH SERVICES 66,100 66,100 65, , Educational Services 14,200 14,200 14, Colleges and Universities 9,300 9,300 8, Health Care & Social Assistance 51,900 51,900 51, Ambulatory Health Care Services 17,500 17,700 17, Hospitals 14,400 14,400 13, Nursing & Residential Care Facilities 7,600 7,600 7, Social Assistance 12,400 12,200 12, LEISURE AND HOSPITALITY 37,400 36,200 35,300 1,200 2, Arts, Entertainment & Recreation 4,500 4,900 3, Accommodation & Food Services 32,900 31,300 31,600 1,600 1, Accommodation 11,900 10,100 11,000 1, Hotels & Motels 10,700 8,900 10,000 1, Food Services & Drinking Places 21,000 21,200 20, OTHER SERVICES 11,000 11,100 10, GOVERNMENT 58,300 58,400 58, Federal Government 6,900 6,900 6, State Government Education 10,500 10,500 10, Other State Government 9,600 9,800 9, Local Government Education 23,700 23,600 24, Other Local Government 7,600 7,600 7, Publication of Computer & Electrical Equipment Mfg. and Fabricated Metal Products Mfg. has been discontinued as of January Source: Current Employment Statistics Program (CES) produced by the Economic and Labor Market Information Division, Vermont Department of Labor ( in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics ( Estimates are preliminary and subject to revision. See Annual Summary for details.