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Hawaii’s unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent in November, the lowest level in four years, the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations reported today.
The November rate compared with a 5.5 percent jobless rate in October. Last month’s rate matched the previous low of 5.3 percent recorded in November 2008, according to the report.
The number unemployed workers in Hawaiii fell to 34,050 in November, down 1,400 from October. The number of employed, meanwhile, rose by 2,600 to 609,600.
Nationally, the unemployment rate fell to 7.7 percent in November from 7.9 percent in October. The state and national numbers are adjusted for seasonal variations, such as hiring by retailers for the holiday shopping season.
On an unadjusted basis the jobless rate in Honolulu County fell to 4.8 percent in November from 5 percent in October. The rate declined to 6.4 percent from 6.5 percent in Kauai County. It was unchanged at 5.7 percent in Maui County and 7.4 percent in Hawaii County.
