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Delaware unemployment low By MAUREEN MILFORD, Staff Reporter The News Journal
June 25, 2003
Delaware's unemployment rate in May was the third lowest in the nation at 3.7 percent, yet the state has 2,000 fewer jobs than it did in the same month in 2002.
The continued pattern of low unemployment in a weak labor market is a new phenomenon for the economy, according to economists.
"In 1992 and 1993 we saw this happen and we called it the jobless recovery. Now, we're seeing a repeat, although it seems to be worse now," said Steven G. Cochrane, senior economist with Economy.com, an economic research firm in West Chester, Pa.
The national unemployment rate in May was 6.1 percent. Although it was much higher than Delaware's rate, it remains well below the unemployment figures during other economic downturns. In June 1992, for example, the national unemployment rate was 7.8 percent. In late 1982, it stood at 10.8 percent.
By comparison, April's unemployment rate of 4.3 percent in Delaware was the highest in recent months.
"The structure of the economy has changed, and it's hard to capture in the statistics," Cochrane said. "I think it's fair to say that the number of unemployed in every state is being underestimated."
Edward L. Simon, labor analyst with the Delaware Department of Labor, said Delaware's unemployment may be well below the nation's because a higher proportion of Delaware workers dropped out of the labor market than in other states. It could be that more workers opted for early retirement, while others may have become discouraged in their job hunt, he said.
Philip R. Hopkins, principal in regional services at Global Insight, an economic forecasting company based in Lexington, Mass., said it will be interesting to see whether the unemployment rate rises in June as more people jump back into the job market based on May's low jobless rate.
The number of unemployed Delawareans in May was 15,600, compared with 17,900 in April and 18,100 in May 2002. At the same time, total net jobs declined by 0.5 percent from May 2002 to May this year.
Helping the employment picture last month was a gain of 1,300 manufacturing jobs, primarily in the automobile assembly industry in New Castle County and food processing industry in Sussex County, Simon said. The number of manufacturing jobs in Delaware totaled 34,800, up from the 33,500 jobs in April, but below the 37,000 jobs in May 2002.
The retail sector also gained 700 jobs above both April and May 2002, possibly because of the rain that led people into stores, Simon said.
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