RI unemployment at 25 year high

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - The numbers are in, and they're not good. Rhode Island's unemployment is at its highest rate since Feb. 1983 and for the second consecutive month, highest in the nation.

 According to the RI Department of Labor and Training , the state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate climbed five-tenths of a percent in October, topping out at 9.3 percent. It's the tenth month in a row Rhode Island saw an increase in its jobless rate.

That means the number of unemployed people in Rhode Island increased by 2,700, for a total of 52,900.

The state held the dubious distinction by itself in September with 8.8% unemployment, but is now tied with Michigan for the highest jobless rate in the country. Both states are far outpacing the national average of 6.5 percent, according to numbers released by the U.S. Department of Labor Thursday.

Rhode Island's jobless rate is also higher than it's neighbors. Massachusetts unemployment rate is 5.5 percent, Connecticut is 6.5 percent, and New England as a whole is 5.9 percent.

When asked about the state's growing unemployment, Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri said the news is troubling.

"There's no sign that we've hit rock bottom, economically," Carcieri said.

However, he said the state is working with banks to secure bridge financing to help save businesses. In addition, since many of the unemployed people were in lower-skilled jobs, the state is really working to ramp up its job training programs.

Unfortunately, the worst is not over, according to economists.

A report, released Thursday at the New England Economic Partnership conference in Boston, predicts that Rhode Island's unemployment rate could reach 10.3 percent by mid-2010 - which according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, would shatter the previous record of 9.7 percent reached in Nov. 1982.

As one of the first states to enter a recession, the forecast predicts Rhode Island will probably be among the last to experience growth in employment, perhaps by the second quarter of 2010.

Making matters even more dire, is the state's decrease in revenue and a growing, multi-million dollar budget deficit .

"With declining revenue and a state budget deficit predicted to be between $370 million and $450 million in FY 2009, the government of Rhode Island has a limited degree of freedom to do anything in the short term," said Edinaldo Tebaldi, Bryant University Economist and one of the authors of the report, titled "The Rhode Island Economic Outlook and Forecast: Feeling the Crunch."

The report does outline suggestions to help Rhode Island out of its financial crisis, however Tebaldi concedes, "It is very hard to see an easy, quick solution to Rhode Island's economic woes."

In a previous interview, former General Electric CEO Jack Welch said Rhode Island's financial crisis should serve as a tale of caution for the rest of the country.

"It's not a right to work state. It's driven all big business out of the state. Eighty percent of the businesses in the state employ 20 people or less," Welch said. "It's actually a very nice state, nice coastline, nice everything. But, they tax the hell out of you, and you don't want to be there."