Jobless rates drop in Virginia metro areas

Unemployment rates in Virginia’s metro areas dropped significantly in April, according to the Virginia Employment Commission.

Two of the 11 metro areas reported unemployment rates of under 3 percent. The rates for Charlottesville and Northern Virginia were 2.7 and 2.8 percent, respectively.

The unemployment numbers are not seasonally adjusted, meaning they do not take into account seasonal fluctuations in the labor force.

Three metro areas, New River Valley (Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford), Harrisonburg and Lynchburg, saw their April jobless rates fall nearly one percentage point from March.

Only one metro area, Hampton Roads, had an employment rate above 4 percent.

A breakdown of the figures shows:

Bristol: 3.9 percent in April, down from 4.7 percent in March.
Charlottesville: 2.7 percent, down from 3.5 percent.
Hampton Roads: 4.1 percent, down from 4.8 percent.
Harrisonburg: 3.2 percent, down from 4.1 percent.
Lynchburg: 3.7 percent, down from 4.6 percent.
New River Valley: 3.6 percent, down from 4.5 percent.
Roanoke: 3.3 percent, down from 4 percent.
Northern Virginia: 2.8 percent, down from 3.4 percent.
Richmond: 3.5 percent, down from 4.1 percent.
Staunton-Waynesboro: 3.2 percent, down from 4 percent.
Winchester: 3 percent, down from 3.8 percent.