Delaware’s unemployment rate dropped from 4.9 percent to 4.8 percent in October—the first decline since 2016.
The latest data comes from a national survey which shows unemployment rising this year in Delaware while it dropped nationally.
Delaware Chief of Occupational Labor Market Information George Sharpley says the new data does not necessarily indicate the beginning of a downward trend for Delaware.
“Survey-based data can have a lot of noise in it month to month. So, before saying things are looking up, I’d want to get a few more months of data in,” said Sharpley.
The survey data estimates 3,100 new jobs in Delaware this year, but Sharpley says payroll data from the second quarter of 2017 indicates that number may be exaggerated, and Delaware’s economy has slowed since last year.
“We’re up about 2,000 or so jobs from a year ago, but that is still about half a percent growth rate which is about half of what the national average is,” said Sharpley.
The total amount of wages paid in the state increased more than 700 million in the first quarter of 2017, but Sharpley attributes this to only a few firms paying out large bonuses.
