The state’s unemployment rate held relatively steady at 8% in August, according to the Maine Department of Labor.
August’s rate is not significantly different from 8.1% in July or 8.2% one year ago, according to a press release. The number of unemployed people totaled 55,400, down 2,100 from one year ago. Additionally, there were a total of 589,400 nonfarm payroll jobs in August, a 4,400 decrease from July. Though job postings have increased since 2009, they have remained flat since April, according to the release.
Nationally, the unemployment rate for August was 9.6%, relatively unchanged from 9.5% in July and 9.7% one year ago.
