Delaware unemployment rate up slightly
Friday, October 16th, 2009
By: Mark Eichmann
meichmann@whyy.org
Delaware's unemployment rate is up to 8.3% in September compared to 8% in August. That translates to 35,900 unemployed Delawareans compared to 23,100 on the unemployment rolls one year ago.
Wilmington continues to lead the state with the highest unemployment rate at 13%. One year ago, the city's rate was close to the current state unemployment rate at 8.2%. The state's unemployment numbers are still better than the national rate, which stands at 9.8%, up one tenth of a percent from August.
Labor department officials say the only job growth over the last 12 months have been in education and health sectors. The biggest job losses were in professional services (5,900 jobs lost), wholesale and retail (4,300 jobs lost), and manufacturing (3,800 jobs lost).