Jobless Rate Falls to 5.8%

“ / aurlipfitrr Hrralft Manchester — A City of Village Charm Friday, Jan. 8,1988 30 Cents No need now for a second paramedic, unit By Nancy Concelman unit)," council member Richard Committee, the council asked in five years, estimated at 2,800, illness. The department has been services may be reluctant to make Manchester Herald Carter said at Thursday night’s Chairman Joel J. Reich to present- and for 10 years, estimated at 3,800. interviewing for a few months now, a financial commitment for only a meeting, held In the Lincoln Center backup options at the Board of The current system in Manchester, Reich said. few years. A second paramedic unit won’t be gold room. Directors workshop Jan. 21. The which works out of the town of Backup is currently provided by Council member Gloria Danger needed in Manchester for at least The council discussed options for study committee, made up of Manchester fire station at 75 Center the commercial Ambulance Ser argued that the town should be one year, members of the Emer providing backup paramedic ser officials from East Hartford, Man St., is designed for 1,250 to 1,500 vice of Manchester on an informal concerned with response time and gency Medical Services Council vice until a second unit is needed, chester and South Windsor, recom calls peryearandnowhandles 1.900 basis. The Board of Directors availability of commercial servi said Thursday. which may be more than five years mended a shared paramedic ser per year. hasn’t yet discussed whether or not ces, not their profits. Butterfield felt the town would be The council, after discussing the in the future. Those options Include vice for Manchester and South The second unit could also serve a formal agreement between the final report from the Regional hiring more firefighters with para Windsor in its report, after East South Windsor, which currently has town and the service forbackup will reluctant to hire a commercial service because of statements Paramedic Study Committee, medic skills for peak periods, using Hartford solved staffing and other no paramedic service and relies on be finalized. agreed that a second unit wouldn't a commercial paramedic service, problems with its paramedic ser an EMT service. Reich said that until the second made in the report that quality of commercial service may be lower be needed immediately because the or a combination of the two for vice and decided not to consider a The Town of Manchester Fire unit is deemed necessary, the town than quality of municipal service. number of duplicate, or unable-to- backup service In Manchester and tri-town regional service. Department currently has 10 could hire a commercial service as " I f somebody were to read this. respond, calls is only 2.7 percent part of South Windsor. The proposal for a second unit in firefighter-paramedics and plans backup in the interim. But Dr. After a discussing the final report Manchester was based on the to add two more to cover during Robert Butterfield, an EMS Council now. Please turn to page 10 “ I Just can’t justify It (the second of the Regional Paramedic Study projected number of calls per year vacation time or time off due to member, said thpt commercial Snow, cold 'SI Jobless rate keeping fuel .4 dealers busy J. falls to 5.8% By Andrew Yurkovsky tion’s factory payrolls have risen Manchester Herald By Matt Yancey The Associated Press by more than 400,000 jobs, mostly in just the last six months,” Ms. As Manchester braced for another snow WASHINGTON - The civilian Norwood told the congressional storm, local fuel companies reported a high Joint Economic Committee. demand for heating oil in the wake of the unemployment rate dropped to 5.8 percent in December, its lowest The increases in manufacturing weeklong cold spell. employment have come in all Snowfall was expected to end tonight with an since July 1979, the Labor Depart industries except for autos, where accumulation of 5 to 8 Inches, the National ment said today, as the economy the total number of jobs remains Weather Service reported. It will remain cold, created 3 million new jobs last year. about 60,000 below what it had been with a low temperature tonight of 15 to 20. Some 235,000 Americans found Today’s snow prompted all public and work in December, raising total in early 1986. Construction employment, after parochial schools In Manchester to close two employment to 115.5 million and seasonal adjustments, rose -by hours early. Public schools in Bolton and dropping the jobless rate 0.1 55,000 in its third straight monthly Coventry also reported early closings. percentage point from November. The number of unemployed peo gain. The town highway division had 15 trucks out at ple dropped by 112,000 to 6,978,000, Business services added 35,000 9 a.m. sanding the roads. George Ringsto/ie, the workers and wholesalers increased division’s work coordinator, said today that the department said. Meanwhile, the number of so- their workforce by 20,000, mostly in additional trucks would' be brought out for called discouraged workers — the durable goods sector. plowing if the snow continued. those who have given up the search In contrast, retail-trade employ The cold weather during the past week has for a job in the belief they could not ment was flat for the second month ^ been keeping fuel suppliers busy. find one — fell by 72,000 to 910,000 in in a row with general merchandise' " It ’s been absolutely crazy.” said Ed Boland the fourth quarter of 1987. Those stores showing a seasonally ad of Boland Bros./Manchester Ice and Fuel. He workers are not counted in the justed drop of 35,000 workers from said his crews have been putting in full days unemployment rate. October to December. Monday through Saturday making deliveries. The total of discouraged workers Ms. Norwood said, however, that In order to keep pp with residential demand, is 200,000, or 20 percent, below the mofe time is needed to determine Boland Bros, had been making advance figure of a year earlier and Is at its whether the retail-trade figures deliveries to commercial establishments. _ , ■fow^'ft sliiSe the last quarfer of liiTO. reflect changed consumer attitudes Beth Harlow, director of human needs for the The department said, however, as a result of the stock market Manchester Area Conference of Churches, said that women and blacks continue to plunge. applications for fuel assistance started out make up a disproportionately large Employment in finance, insu slowly in December but have picked up this share of discouraged workers. rance and real estate, which had month. Though she had no figures, she said the “ Although overall joblessness been growing at a slower pace in number of applications are ‘‘quite a bit heavier improved, we must still be con recent months than had been the than last year." cerned about the several types of case over the preceding four years, Harlow said that the Samaritan Shelter on problems that persist,” said Janet was unchang^ in December. Main Street has been busy the past week, but it L. Norwood, the commissioner of As with retail trade, Ms. Norwood has not reached its capacity of 40. - labor statistics. “ The number said, more time is needed for Boland said that fuel prices have been rising worklw cart time even though they changes to be perceived as a result during about the past week. The price at Boland prefent.5 work remains of the Oct. 19 crash. Bros, is now 86.9 cents per gallon, about 10 cents at more than 5 million and minority “ Actually, employment growth above last year’s price. youths continue to have difficulty in in that industry had already begun Ed Havens, president of Imperial Plumbing finding jobs." to slow last spring,” partly as a and Oil Co. of South Windsor, said his drivers A survey of business payrolls result of the weakness in banking, have been delivering oil seven days a week for showed an increase of 325,000 new she said. the past two weeks. With the cold weather, jobs in December. Some 40,000 Consistent with the manufactur homeowners are checking their tanks to make, were in manufacturing and a like ing rebound, men, who suffered the sure they have enough oil. he said. number were in health services. "The winter Is average, but when you get a “ Since last December, the na- Please turn to page 10 cold spell like this, an experienced dealer can handle it," Havens said. A dispatcher at Wyman Oil Co. Inc. said that demand was heavy but not out of the ordinary for this time of year. ’ ’They didn’t cancel winter,” Bolton will build he said. Steve McNeish, assistantdirector of commun ications for AA A-Hartford, said that the number of calls received today were relatively low. extra classrooms Eighty requests for road service were made between 7 and 10 a.m. Packman said he hopes the “ Quite a few people ha ve decided to stay home By Andrew J. Davis Oavld Kool/ManchMtar Harald Manchester Herald addition can be built by September, today,” he said. but he said he would accept a By contrast, last Wednesday, the biggest day November completion date. He so far this season. 800 calls were received for GETTING READY — Donald Kurapkot of Manchester readies a 12-foot plow BOLTON — A two-room, $233,800 said he wanted the addition finished road service. McNeish said that motorists by addition to Bolton Elementary on a town truck before heading out early today from the Public Works before winter.

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