Westport's Jobless Rate Inches Up in July

Westport's unemployment rate inched up from 6.1 percent in June to 6.2 percent in July, according to data released by the Connecticut Department of Labor.

This is the highest unemployment rate for Westport in 2013. The lowest percentage of unemployed residents was reported in February and April -- 5.8 percent.

The local unemployment picture is better than the state's, though Connecticut gained 11,500 jobs last month. The state's jobless rate ticked up to 8.1 percent in July, from 8 percent in June.

July's job gain is the second best the state has experienced since the recovery from the Great Recession began in February 2010, Andy Cohen, the Department of Labor's director of office research, said. Only May 2010's boost in jobs (thanks to temporary census employment) outnumbered the July figures.

This is the fifth consecutive month of job increases in Connecticut, according to the Department of Labor, and yet the unemployment rate continues to hovers near 8 percent. The state's labor market grew by .7 percent last month.

The nation's jobless rate shrank slightly in July, from 7.6 in June to 7.4 percent. 

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