Mass. has worst U.S. unemployment rate for second straight month
Photo | Grant Welker
A man walks by a vacant storefront on Front Street in downtown Worcester.
Massachusetts has the highest unemployment rate in the country for the second month in a row, despite a small decline from June to July.
The July unemployment rate in Massachusetts was 16.1%, according to new figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which released its monthly report on Friday. In June, the Massachusetts unemployment rate was 17.4%.
Just behind Massachusetts is New York, with an unemployment rate of 15.9%, and Connecticut, with an unemployment rate of 10.2%.
The Massachusetts unemployment rate marked the greatest increase from the year prior. According to the report, that number increased 13.2 percentage points from July 2019.
Nationally, the unemployment rate fell to 10.2%, according to federal data, marking a decrease of .9 percentage points. The number of unemployed individuals dropped by 1.4 million, with 16.3 million people unemployed, according to BLS.
Nationally, the unemployment rate for women was slightly higher, coming in at 10.5% for July, compared to 9.4% for men. Disparities were even greater among different ethnicities, especially Black workers, for whom the unemployment rate was 14.6%, compared to 9.2% for white workers, according to federal data. The unemployment rate for Asian people, in turn, came in at 12%, and for Hispanic people, that figure was 12.9%.
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I find these statistics fascinating, and very tainted. I own/manage a staffing company and we have over 500 open positions that we cannot fill! People do not want to go back to work in way too many cases. This State should take action against those that refuse to go back to work. Talk to all small businesses! They will tell you the same thing. They can't get people to go back to work. It's a huge problem! This State needs to focus on how small businesses are suffering. This State needs to take action against those who are capable and able to work, but refuse to work because they are making too much money staying home.
Here is another comment that will never see the light of day!
Once again, thanks must go to our illustrious Gov. Charlie Baker (or as Joe Biden calls him Charlie Parker).
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