News
West Virginia Employment Outlook Not Good
By: Associated Press
Posted on:
Moody's Analytics says job growth in West Virginia over the next year won't be enough to reduce the state's unemployment rate.
Moody's latest forecast expects about 1,000 jobs a month to be created through 2012. But that won't keep pace with the number of younger workers entering the labor force.
Moody's says West Virginia won't see a significant decline in unemployment until 2013.
Ted Boettner with the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy says that the state's weak labor market likely won't recover without action by the state and federal governments.
In August, West Virginia's seasonally adjustment unemployment rate remained at 8.1 percent. The number of people working or actively looking for work dropped to 773,000.