Summer Unemployment Decreases In Triangle

Monday, October 04, 2010

Over the summer months, unemployment in the Triangle was on a gradual but steady decrease.

In all three Triangle localities, unemployment percentages dropped a few tenths of a percent each month from June through August (see breakout). Virginia Employment Commission’s Senior Economist Ann Lang warns that this decrease doesn’t necessarily mean the economy is in recovery.

Generally during the summer months there is a decline in unemployment numbers due to seasonal employment and students

working, said Lang.

But over the summer period, not only has employment (the number of people in the workforce) increased, but the number of people who are unemployed is also down, which is a good thing, she said.

The true test of whether the economy is really on an upward trajectory will be how the fall numbers look, according to Lang, along with other national indicators. “This recovery is very tenuous. Consumer confidence has not yet rebounded, and until you see that improve” you won’t see the economy – or unemployment – where they should be, she said.

Compared to the state, which has seen unemployment hovering right around seven percent over the summer, James City County and York County are doing significantly better with averages in the five percent range.

Williamsburg unemployment rates remain consistently high, between 14 and 15 percent over the summer, but VEC representatives have long said that the city’s small number of workers can skew the numbers, along with the possible inclusion of James City County residents who mistakenly claim that they live in Williamsburg.