Unemployment falls in almost all Virginia metro areas

Unemployment continued to fall in almost all of Virginia’s metro areas during September, according to the Virginia Employment Commission.

The VEC reported on Wednesday that jobless rates fell in 10 of the commonwealth’s 11 metro areas. The one exception was the Winchester area where the rate was 3.7 percent in September, unchanged from August.

The regional unemployment figures were not seasonally adjusted, meaning they do not take into effect seasonal changes in the labor market.

Three metro areas had jobless under 4 percent in September — Northern Virginia, Winchester and Charlottesville. The  highest rate, only 4.6 percent, was recorded in Hampton Roads.

The decrease in jobless rates ranged from one-tenth of a percentage point in Northern Virginia and the Staunton-Waynesboro area to four-tenths of a percentage point in the New River Valley (Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford) and the Harrisonburg area.

A breakdown of the numbers shows:

Bristol: 4.5 percent in September, down from 4.7 percent in August.
Charlottesville: 3.6 percent, down from 3.8 percent.
Hampton Roads: 4.6 percent, down from 4.8 percent.
Harrisonburg: 4 percent, down from 4.4 percent.
Lynchburg: 4.5 percent, down from 4.8 percent.
New River Valley: 4.1 percent, down from 4.5 percent.
Northern Virginia: 3.4 percent, down from 3.5 percent.
Richmond: 4.5 percent, down from 4.7 percent.
Roanoke: 4.1 percent, down from 4.4 percent.
Staunton-Waynesboro: 4 percent, down from 4.1 percent.
Winchester: 3.7 percent, unchanged.