Labor Market Information - RI Labor Force Brief

Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training
Labor Force Brief – May 2009

The statistical data in the Labor Force Brief are subject to monthly and annual revisions; therefore, the figures in the current edition should not be compared to those in prior versions of this publication.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Job losses continued in May, decreasing by 1,100 from April’s revised employment level (464,600). Half of the job losses reflected the end of temporary Census jobs.

Rhode Island showed an annual decline in private sector jobs through April (-4.5%), losing 18,800 jobs between April 2008 and April 2009. Job growth was down 4.9 percent in Vermont, 4.3 percent in Connecticut and 4.1 percent in Massachusetts during the same period. (May data for other states was unavailable. April data are preliminary.)

RI lost 500 private sector jobs in May, increasing the number of private sector jobs lost since December 2007 (the start of the national recession) to 22,900, a decline of 5.3%.

Our unemployment rate in May 2009 was 12.1%, up one percentage point from the prior month. The May 2009 jobless rate was up 4.7 percentage points from the May 2008 rate of 7.4 percent.

In May 2009, the number of unemployed RI residents climbed by 5,800 from April to 68,500 (the highest unemployment level on record). It was 26,600 above the year-ago level.

The number of RI residents employed in May 2009 decreased by 3,100 to 497,600 and was down 28,100 from the May 2008 level. For the twenty-third straight month, the number of employed was lower than its respective prior year level.

RI MONTHLY JOB CHANGES (seasonally adjusted)

The total job count in Rhode Island declined by 1,100 from April’s level to 463,500 in May, as seven of the ten major industry super sectors showed job losses. On the national level, US payroll employment fell for the seventeenth consecutive month, declining by 345,000 in May.

In Rhode Island, job losses were felt in Government (-600, mostly from temporary Census jobs), Professional & Business Services (-300), Trade, Transportation, & Utilities (-300), Education & Health Services (-200), Other Services (-200), Manufacturing (-100), and Information (-100).

In Rhode Island, job gains were noted in Leisure & Hospitality (+400) and Construction (+300). Financial Activities was unchanged.

The US economy lost 345,000 jobs in May. Job cutbacks in Manufacturing (-156,000); Construction (-59,000); Trade, Transportation, & Utilities (-54,000); Professional & Business Services (-51,000); Financial Activities (-30,000); Information (-24,000); Government (-7,000) and Other Services (-1,000) overshadowed job gains in Education & Health Services (+44,000) and Leisure & Hospitality (+3,000).

Compared to May 2008, RI jobs were down 20,700 overall, a 4.3 percent decrease. All ten super sectors showed over-the-year job losses: Manufacturing (-4,900); Trade, Transportation & Utilities (-4,400); Professional & Business Services (-3,000); Construction (-2,500); Government (-2,000); Financial Activities (-1,200); Leisure & Hospitality (-1,200); Other Services (-700); Information (-500) and Education & Health Services (-200).

Through May 2009, Rhode Island had a net loss of 32,900 total jobs from January 2007, the peak in RI employment. Of the super sectors, Manufacturing had the largest loss (-8,100), followed by Trade, Transportation & Utilities (-6,800); Construction (-5,700); Professional & Business Services (-5,200) Financial Activities (-3,300); Government (-2,700); Other Services (-1,100); Leisure & Hospitality (-800); and Information (-400).

RI Job Changes by Major Industry Super Sector

Education & Health Services (+1,200) was the only super sector to report jobs gains since January 2007.

RI’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in May increased by one percent to 12.1 percent. RI’s May unemployment rate was 2.7 percentage points above the US rate (9.4 percent).

RI’s jobless rate in May 2009 increased one percentage point from the prior month to 12.1 percent, the highest level in over 30 years. The May rate was up 4.7 percentage points from last May.
In May, RI’s seasonally adjusted jobless rate (12.1%) was 2.7 percentage points above the US rate of 9.4 percent. The US rate increased by half a percentage point over the month.
The number of employed RI residents decreased by 3,100 from April to May 2009, and was down 28,100 from May 2008.

Our labor force (+2,700) increased in May due to the increase in the number of unemployed RI residents.

RI's unemployment rate for April 2009 (11.1%) was above the rates for both Massachusetts (8.0%) and Connecticut (7.9%). (May data for MA and CT are not yet available.)

The number of RI residents classified as unemployed grew by 5,800 in May to 68,500, the highest level on record.

The number of unemployed residents in Rhode Island climbed by 5,800 in May to 68,500, the highest jobless level on record.

For the twenty-third straight month, the number of unemployed RI residents was higher than its respective prior year level.

The increase in the number of unemployed residents pushed our unemployment rate up to 12.1 percent in May 2009.

Our Unemployment Insurance (UI) claims levels for 2009 remained above the 2008 levels, reflecting the continued weakness in the labor market.

	RI Initial Claims for unemployment benefits through the first 23 weeks of 2009 were 40.1 percent above the same period in 2008. They were up 13.9 percent in 2008 from 2007 levels during the same period.
	US Initial Claims were up 74.0 percent over the first 20 weeks of 2009 compared to 2008. They were up 12.0 percent in 2008 compared to the same period in 2007.
	Also, the number of RI Continued Claims – those individuals who are collecting unemployment benefits – was 52.2 percent above 2008 figures through the first 23 weeks of the year. The 2008 levels were up 15.6 percent from 2007 levels during the same period.
	US Continued Claims increased 93.1 percent over the first 20 weeks of 2009 compared to 2008. They were up 14.4 percent in 2008 from 2007.
NOTE: The pattern in RI claims data for the first quarter of 2009 were skewed by the delays in processing UI claims over the past several months. Claims and payments are not counted until they are entered into the system, so the increases shown for the first quarter of 2009 are misleading.

The number of Final Payments for those on the regular UI program was up 70.6 percent during the first 23 weeks of 2009 when compared to the same period in 2008. It was up 28.2 percent in 2008 compared to the same period in 2007.

EUC & EB - Since the onset of UI benefits extensions, 384,478 payments have been issued under the federal extension (EUC-08) and 35,389 payments have been issued under the federal-state extension (EB)

RI Weekly Final Payments

RI's Insured Unemployment Rate of 5.95 percent (the number of individuals collecting as a percentage of covered employment) for the first 22 weeks of 2009 was above our 2007 and 2008 levels.

RI’s Insured Unemployment Rate was 93.18 percent above the prior two-year average in the last week of May.

RI's 13 Week Average Insured Unemployment Rate

OTHER LOCAL ECONOMIC ITEMS IN THE NEWS

Alliance Time, a New York company which acquired the rights to most of the recently-closed Colibri Group jewelry and accessory company, has announced that 50 former Colibri employees have been hired to resume operations at an East Providence plant. Alliance Time plans to reintroduce Colibri products to the market. (Providence Journal, 6/5/09)

Federal stimulus money: Summer jobs programs will provide employment for 1,700 Rhode Island youths, between the ages 14 to 24, who come from low-income families and have other barriers to employment. The programs will provide employment readiness training, career exploration and workplace experience to disadvantaged youth. Funding for the programs comes from $4 million in federal stimulus money targeted for summer employment. (Providence Journal, 6/7/09)

Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) hosted a technical career fair on June 9th. Interviews were conducted for computer scientists, computer engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical/electronics engineers and mathematicians. There are also openings for contract specialists with a bachelor’s or master’s degree. (NBC 10 News, 6/5/09)

United Way of Rhode Island has laid off 8 of its 50 employees. The cuts were primarily due to the loss in value to one of its major investments. (Providence Journal, 6/9/09)

Providence Head Start will be taken over by Children’s Friend and Service in June. The new company has advised Head Start’s 200 employees that they will be laid off, but may reapply for the positions, along with other new job applicants. (Providence Journal, 5/22/09)

Towerstream Corp., a provider of high-speed internet service based in Middletown, has laid off several employees, though would not disclose the exact number or total people the company employs. The staff reduction was due to a change in the company’s sale strategy. (Providence Journal, 6/10/09)

Nursing demand slows: Health care professionals are blaming the economy for slowing the demand for nurses in RI. Older nurses delaying retirement, part-time and per diem nurses increasing their hours, and patients deferring elective surgeries have all resulted in a lack of available positions for 2009 nursing graduates. (Providence Business News, 5/16/09)