Connecticut unemployment fell to 8.2 percent in November despite the loss of more jobs during the month, the state Labor Department says.
State labor officials said jobless people who for the time being have given up looking for work was the most likely reason for the biggest one-month change in unemployment since January, when it rose to 7.3 percent from 6.6 percent in December.
The drop from 8.8 percent in October ended four consecutive monthly increases in the jobless rate since June and was the biggest one-month decline in a decade, according to labor agency data.
Nationally, the unemployment rate dropped to 10 percent in November from 10.2 percent in October.
“Connecticut continues to follow the national trend in that November showed job losses, as well as a decrease in the unemployment rate,” said supervising labor statistician Salvatore DiPillo.
“However, lower unemployment rates and fewer unemployed people are not necessarily signals of better economic times,” DiPillo said. “If people are not seeking work, then they are not counted among the labor force, and do not figure into the unemployment rate.”
The state’s economy shed 2,600 jobs in November, bringing to 62,000 the total lost since November 2008.
