We often see fluctuations (in the jobless rate) as the economy improves. One month does not make a trend.
While the unemployment rate is declining, it might be more exaggerated than the reality.
Western Pennsylvania is showing signs of job growth but it isn't growing as quickly as what we're seeing in the eastern half of the state.
I will tell you right off the bat, I believe the (unemployment) decline is a little exaggerated.
The biggest star of this, as far as job growth, was health care and social assistance employment.
We saw the impact of the recession in 2002 and 2003, then saw a smaller decline in 2004. But in 2005, we started to see job increases, and that's a positive sign.
