Virginia’s June jobless rate rises to 4.2 percent

AP
Published: July 30, 2008

Virginia’s June unemployment rate was 4.2 percent, up 1.1 percentage points from the same time a year ago, and the highest jobless rate for the month since 2003.

The Virginia Employment Commission says June’s unemployment was up from 3.8 percent in May, as students seeking summer jobs and new graduates entered the labor market. It was the highest June unemployment rate since 2003, when it was 4.5 percent.

In the greater Richmond area, the jobless rate rose by a 0.5 percentage point to 4.5 percent. At 7.8 percent unemployment, Petersburg had the highest jobless rate in the area. Only five cities have a higher rate.

The state’s June unemployment was well below the national rate of 5.7 percent.

Among Virginia’s 134 counties and cities, Arlington County had the lowest unemployment rate at 2.6 percent; Martinsville had the highest, at 11.4 percent.

— The Associated Press