Rhode Island Employment Snapshot, August 2012

Rhode Island’s unemployment rate fell a tenth of a point in August, to 10.7%, still second only to Nevada.  This month, the results could be termed “mixed,” but it’s a mix of bad and stagnant.  Employment actually increased, after a summer of losses, but even more gave up looking for work.

The first chart below shows the trends in labor force (employed and looking for work) and employment since the beginning of the recession in January 2007.  The second chart shows the labor force and employment pictures for Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut as each state’s current percentage of January 2007.