The state’s unemployment rate fell to 11.8% in June as more residents returned to work following the coronavirus shutdown.
New figures released Tuesday by N.H. Employment Security show that approximately 25,000 residents who lost their jobs earlier this year were back to work in June.
Still, there are nearly 100,000 fewer people working right now than there were last year at this time. Retail, restaurant, and hotel jobs are still heavily impacted, as are white-collar positions and those in education and health care.
The construction sector is a lone bright spot, showing only modest job losses through the first few months of the global pandemic.
After peaking at 17.1% in April, the state’s rate dipped to 15.4% in May. Before the pandemic, New Hampshire had an unemployment rate below 3% for more than 50 consecutive months.
The national unemployment rate stands at 11.1%.
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