Today, the Vermont Department of Labor released data on the Vermont economy for the time period covering April 2022. According to household data, the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for April was 2.5 percent. This reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. The March seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate was revised down to 2.6 percent due to the inclusion of additional information.

Commissioner's Message

“Though April numbers show gains to the labor force and the number of employed Vermonters, there is a still a gap between jobs available and the number of unemployed. The ratio is approximately 3 to 1 – for every three open jobs in Vermont, there is one person categorized as ‘unemployed’. While the definition of ‘unemployed’ can be narrow, the 3-1 ratio highlights the tight labor market conditions and the need to increase the labor force to meet the current hiring needs of Vermont employers. Whether you are a business or a jobseeker, working with the Vermont Department of Labor can expediate positive labor market outcomes. To learn more about the services offered by the Department, please contact our Workforce Development team at (802) 828-4394 or by visiting Labor.Vermont.gov/Jobs.” - Michael Harrington, Commissioner

State of Vermont Overview

The Vermont seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate declined to 2.5 percent in April. The comparable United States rate in April was 3.6 percent, which experienced no change from the revised March estimate. The seasonally-adjusted Vermont data for April show the Vermont civilian labor force increased by 1,312 from the prior month’s revised estimate (see Table 1). The number of employed persons increased by 1,883 and the number of unemployed persons decreased by 571. The changes to the labor force, the number of employed persons and the unemployment rate were statistically significant in the seasonally-adjusted series.

The April unemployment rates for Vermont’s 17 labor market areas ranged from 1.9 percent in White River Junction and Burlington-South Burlington to 4.4 percent in Derby (note: local labor market area unemployment rates are not seasonally-adjusted – see Table 2). For comparison, the April unadjusted unemployment rate for Vermont was 2.4 percent, which experienced no change from the revised unadjusted March level and a decrease of one and ninth-tenths percentage points from a year ago.

Analysis of Job Changes by Industry

Seasonally-Adjusted (Table 3)

The seasonally-adjusted data for April reports an increase of 100 jobs from the revised March data. There was an increase of 1,100 jobs between the preliminary and the revised March estimates due to the inclusion of more data. The seasonally-adjusted over-the-month changes in April were varied at the industry level. Those with a notable increase include: Accommodation & Food Services (+700 jobs or +2.4%) and Professional & Technical Services (+300 jobs or +1.9%). Industries with a notable decrease include: Finance & Insurance (-300 jobs or -3.3%) and Retail Trade (-500 jobs or -1.4%).

Not-Seasonally-Adjusted (Table 4)

The preliminary ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ jobs estimates for April show a decrease of 2,600 jobs when compared to the revised March numbers. As with the ‘seasonally-adjusted’ data, this over-the-month change is from the revised March numbers which experienced an increase of 600 jobs from the preliminary estimates. The broader economic picture can be seen by focusing on the over-the-year changes in this data series. As detailed in the preliminary ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ April data, Total Private industries increased by 3,900 jobs (+1.6%) over the year and Government (including public education) employment has increased by 800 jobs (+1.5%) in the past year.

The Unemployment and Jobs Report for May is scheduled to be released on Friday, June 17th, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. View the most recent report at VTlmi.info/press.pdf