The monthly unemployment rate in Massachusetts has dropped below 3% for the first time in more than 18 years.
The state office of Labor and Workforce Development reported Friday that the jobless rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point in April to stand at 2.9%. The U.S. rate stood at 3.6% last month.
State Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Rosalin Acosta said the last time the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was lower than 3% was in December 2000.
Preliminary estimates from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics' show Massachusetts added 4,100 jobs in April.
The bureau estimates the state has added more than 37,000 jobs over the past 12 months.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
