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Home | News | Washington region unemployment rate increases

The Washington, D.C., region's unemployment rate increased from 6.1 percent to 6.2 percent in December 2009, significantly affected by the district's 12.1 percent unemployment rate, according to The Washington Post.

In response to the district's high unemployment rate, D.C. Council members introduced legislation Feb. 2 that would allow small businesses who agree over the next five years to hire 10 employees at salaries of at least $55,000 to receive a credit on their business franchise tax, which would be equivalent to half the amount they pay in federal payroll taxes—or about $2,100 per new worker. Officials hope to reduce the unemployment rate by two percentage points and add about 6,600 jobs.

The unemployment rate in the city varies widely, from 3.2 percent in Ward 3, which includes Friendship Heights and Chevy Chase, to 28.5 percent in Ward 8, which includes Anacostia.

"It's a citywide problem, one that we need to tackle together," says council member Kwame Brown (D-At Large).

Still, the Washington region's 6.1 percent jobless rate was well below the national rate of 9.7 percent, and the federal government is expected to fuel major job growth in the future. A recent Woods & Poole Economics report projected the Washington area will be one of the leading metropolitan areas for job growth from 2011 to 2040, predicting a 49 percent increase for jobs—from 3.9 million to 5.9 million jobs. Jobs would be created in federal government, health care, construction, professional and business services, and local and state government.

Some officials point out that hiring most likely will not happen uniformly across the region, and many district residents who do not work for the federal government would not benefit from the work force expansion.

Overall, the number of unemployed people in the Washington region remained steady at about 191,000.

2/11/2010

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