CT Adds Jobs, Unemployment Rate Drops In November

Connecticut added 2,500 jobs in November, and the state’s unemployment rate dropped to 9%. WNPR’s Harriet Jones reports.

This latest report from the state Department of Labor shows Connecticut adding jobs, although the picture was mixed across different industry sectors. Healthcare and education led the way, adding 3,000 jobs, while the government sector, which includes the casinos, fell by 1,700. Other gainers were professional and business services and manufacturing.

In a separate survey, the state’s unemployment rate fell from 9.1% to 9% — that in a month when the national rate actually went up. The figures mean that in the 11 months since the beginning of 2010, the state has added back a net figure of 10,600 jobs. Connecticut lost an estimated 100,000 jobs during the recession. Many indicators still show how reluctant employers still are to commit to permanent hiring. Surveys show the average workweek in the private sector rising to 33.5 hours as companies give overtime instead of hiring, and temporary services is the sector that’s made the strongest job gains this year.

For WNPR, I'm Harriet Jones.