Winchester Unemployment Numbers Show Improvement

Many communities in Massachusetts and across the state have been concerned with unemployment. With the national average hovering around 10 percent, it has been one of the top political discussions that has taken place this election season.

And while Winchester is far from untouched by the growing joblessness rate in the country, it's much better than the national average and is one of the better towns in the state according to data released a by the state at the end of September.

The current 5.6 percent unemployment rate in Winchester is down .5 percent from July and showed an improvement of 1.2 percent from last August.

"With seven straight months of job growth and the unemployment rate dropping, Massachusetts continues to move forward. And that's no accident," said Gov. Deval Patrick.

"By focusing on our strengths, we've created nearly 65,000 jobs since December, are top tier in the nation for job growth and are on track to emerge from this recession faster and stronger than other states. I know there is more to do, more people who need work. So, for them, we will keep fighting," he noted, with less than seven weeks before the General Election.

Comparing Winchester to the rest of Massachusetts, the town is tied for the 48th best unemployment number across the Bay State. And regionally it's right in line with its neighboring towns, and in most cases a little better.

It's the same number as Wellesley (5.6), but better than Belmont (5.8), Lexington (5.9), Arlington (6.1), Reading (6.2), Woburn (7.6) and Stoneham (7.0).

Compared to towns that have at least a work force of 10,000 (Winchester's is 10,886) only Nantucket (4.2) and Brookline (4.9) have a lower number.

Looking at the numbers, 609 Winchester residents were collecting unemployment in August. That is down from the 676 that collected in July and the 735 that collected last August.

The 10,886 workers in Winchester are 14 more than were in the town a year ago, however it's 40 less than were in Winchester just this past July.