By Joe Ragusa
BLOOMINGTON – Unemployment has dropped in Bloomington-Normal.
The Illinois Department of Employment Security said the unemployment rate in the Twin Cities dropped to 4.8 percent in October, down from 5 percent in October of 2014. It’s the lowest October unemployment rate in Bloomington-Normal since 2007, when unemployment was 3.7 percent.
The area added 700 jobs last month, even though seven of the other 12 metro areas in the state experienced job losses.
Job gains in the Twin Cities were seen in the retail trade, professional and business services, and leisure and hospitality sectors. Job losses were experienced in government, construction and manufacturing.
Overall, the state unemployment rate dropped to 5.3 percent in October and the state added 41,100 jobs.
Joe Ragusa can be reached at joe.ragusa@cumulus.com.
