WPRO News and the Associated Press
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) – Rhode Island’s unemployment rate of 6.8 percent in December ranks it one of the worst five states for joblessness.
The state unemployment rate has not been so low in nearly seven years, since March 2008.
But numbers released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show it’s still lagging far behind most other states.
The only states with an unemployment rate worse that Rhode Island are Mississippi, California and Georgia. Rhode Island tied with Nevada to rank fourth-worst among states.
The District of Columbia also has a higher unemployment rate: at 7.3 percent, it’s the worst rate in the nation.
The national unemployment rate in December stood at 5.6 percent, 1.2 percentage points lower than in Rhode Island.
