Press Release  Latest Seasonally Unadjusted Unemployment and Job Estimates for Local Labor Markets in Massachusetts for December 2022

Boston, MA — January 24, 2023 - Local unemployment rates increased in twenty-four labor market areas in the state during the month of December compared to November, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported.

Compared to December 2021, the rates were down in twenty-four labor market areas.

Of the fifteen areas for which employment estimates are published, three NECTA areas gained jobs compared to the previous month. The largest increases occurred in the Framingham (+0.2%), Lawrence-Methuen Town-Salem MA-NH (+0.2%), and Leominster-Gardner (+0.2%) areas.

From December 2021 to December 2022, fourteen areas gained jobs with the largest percentage increases seen in the Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford MA-NH (+5.2%), Boston-Cambridge-Newton (+4.5%), and Leominster-Gardner (+3.9%) areas.

The statewide seasonally adjusted preliminary jobs estimate showed an increase of 6,300 jobs in December, and an over-the-year gain of 134,500 jobs.

In order to compare the statewide rate to local unemployment rates, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the statewide unadjusted unemployment rate for December 2022 was 3.2 percent, up three-tenths of a percentage point from the revised November estimate and one-tenth of a percentage point below the nation’s unadjusted unemployment rate of 3.3 percent.

Last week, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported the statewide seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the month of December 2022 was 3.3 percent, down one-tenth of a percentage point from the revised November 2022 estimate of 3.4 percent. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the nation’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December 2022 was 3.5 percent.

The unadjusted unemployment rates and job estimates for the labor market areas reflect seasonal fluctuations and therefore may show different levels and trends than the statewide seasonally adjusted estimates.

The estimates for labor force, unemployment rates, and jobs for Massachusetts are based on different statistical methodology specified by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

NOTES: The preliminary January 2023 and the revised 2022 unemployment rates, labor force data and jobs estimates for Massachusetts will be released on Friday, March 10, 2023; local unemployment statistics for January 2023 will be released on Tuesday, March 14, 2023. Detailed labor market information is available at http://www.mass.gov/EconomicResearch. See the 2023 Media Advisory for complete list of release dates.

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