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In the Merrimack Valley: Dropping Unemployment Rates in Local Communities
From the Tewkbury Patch and writer Katie Curley-Katzman – I borrowed this interesting chart comparing the unemployment rates in Merrimack Valley communities between November 2010 and November 2011 and between October and November 21011. While there is other data that can be considered, at least the comparison of these numbers from the State Office of Workforce Development shows that unemployment rates are improving for communities in the Merrimack Valley.
| Community | Unemployment Rate Nov. 2011 | Unemployment Rate Oct. 2011 | Unemployment Rate Nov. 2010 |
| Acton | 4.1 % | 4.7 % | 5.8 % |
| Andover | 4.6 % | 5.3 % | 6.4 % |
| Chelmsford | 5.4 % | 5.8 % | 6.7 % |
| Dracut | 6.1 % | 6.7 % | 8.0 % |
| Lawrence | 14.4 % | 15.4 % | 17.0 % |
| Littleton | 4.6 % | 4.9 % | 6.4 % |
| Lowell | 8.7 % | 9.3 % | 10.5 % |
| North Andover | 5.4 % | 5.6 % | 7.2 % |
| North Reading | 5.3 % | 6.0 % | 6.9 % |
| Reading | 4.9 % | 5.5 % | 6.2 % |
| Tewksbury | 5.5 % | 5.9 % | 7.3 % |
| Wakefield | 4.7 % | 5.6 % | 7.0 % |
| Westford | 4.5 % | 4.9 % | 6.3 % |
Sadly, part of the drop in unemployment is the fact that discouraged workers are dropping out of the labor market and folks who’ve exhausted their unemployment benefits, in a cruel twist, are no longer counted as officially unemployed.