Job Growth Inches Upward
Despite an apparent drop last month, the trend in Vermont job growth has continued in the right direction. As of May, employers had added almost 10,000 jobs since the recession’s lowest point, although Vermont needs another 4,000 to get back to the high reached in April 2008. Meanwhile, Vermont’s unemployment rate—which is based on a survey of households—was essentially unchanged: It moved from 4.0 percent in April to 4.1 percent in May. Vermonters without jobs and actively seeking work rose 
from an estimated 14,000 in April to 14,400 last month.
Annual wages: All over the map
Workers in non-farm jobs in Chittenden County earned over 50 percent more than those in Grand Isle last year. The difference does not necessarily mean jobs pay more in Chittenden County. The mix of jobs varies from county to county, and the number of hours people work also affects the average annual wage. The new data from the Vermont Department of Labor show that annual wages for non-farm payroll jobs ranged from $30,454 in Grand Isle County to $47,813 in Chittenden County in 2012. The state average was $40,969.
Women: Half of jobs, lower earnings
Women held more non-farm payroll jobs than men in eight of Vermont’s 14 counties in 2012; in Bennington and Grand Isle Counties women’s share was 53 percent, the largest in the state.
Statewide, women held just under half of non-farm jobs. Still, average annual wages tended to be lower in the counties where women held a larger share of jobs. Again, the lower annual wages may be the result of the mix of jobs and the number of hours worked—not necessarily the rate of pay. Counties reflect the location of the job, not where the employees reside.
