The unemployment rate in Massachusetts fell slightly in December as the state added 5,600 jobs, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development announced Thursday.

December's 3.3 percent state unemployment rate, which dropped from 3.4 percent in November, was below the national rate of 3.9 percent.

Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Rosalin Acosta said the 184,700 residents added to the labor force in 2018 marked the largest yearly increase since 1976.

"These labor force gains, alongside the 65,800 jobs added to the economy last year, are indicators of the continued strength of the job market in the Commonwealth," she said.

There were 187,400 more Massachusetts residents employed in December 2018 than December 2017, and 2,700 fewer residents unemployed.

From November 2018 to December, the Massachusetts labor force grew by 5,000 people to 3,842,000, with 3,715,800 employed and 126,200 unemployed.

Information from Statehouse News Service

 

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