State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said that 2017 was a banner year for job creation and employment in the Coastal area.

The 10-county Coastal region ended the calendar year with 8,350 more employed residents, 5,453 more people in the workforce, and an unemployment rate down 1 percent.  

“This is a very good year for the Coastal area,” Butler said. “All of the major indicators trended in the right direction. I’m expecting the same will continue in 2018.”

The region also gained 150 employed residents last month. Coastal area ended 2017 with 312,971 employed residents.

The Coastal labor force, the number of residents with jobs and those unemployed but actively looking for work, grew by two in December. The area posted a labor force total of 326,819 at year’s end.

In December, 1,322 initial claims for unemployment insurance were filed, up by 2.3 percent from the previous month. As compared to December 2016, initial claims are down by 9 percent from 1,455.  

Meanwhile, the region’s unemployment rate fell from 5.2 percent to 4.2 over the 12-month cycle. The December rate, at 4.2 percent, was down from the previous month by .1 percent.