Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, June 18, 1993                   TAG: 9306180116
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MAG POFF STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

ROANOKE 2ND IN VA. FOR NEW JOBS

The Virginia Employment Commission reported Thursday that Roanoke gained 2,500 jobs to 127,100, up 2 percent over April 1992.

The gains were in the service sector - especially business and health services - trade, local government and nondurable manufactured goods.

The report said announced job losses by banks and catalog retailers had not yet had much of an impact on the employment figures by April.

Seven of Virginia's eight metropolitan areas turned in positive annual job growth performances compared with year-earlier levels.

The three largest metro areas, Northern Virginia, Tidewater and Richmond-Petersburg, have been growing since the last half of 1992. That growth, however, has been in the modest 0.6 to 1.3 percent range.

Danville was basically stable, but Bristol suffered plant closings at the end of 1992 that are now causing job losses of 1.8 percent.

For the state, nonagricultural employment advanced by 18,500 jobs or 0.7 percent.

This was slightly poorer growth than the 23,500 or 0.8 percent in March, and March was affected by the late-winter blizzard.

But it had no impact on the unemployment figures because the jobless rate dropped from 5.2 percent in March to a 29-month low of 4.8 percent in April.

\ Employment in Virginia Metro Areas\ \ April 1993 April 1992 Change\ Lynchburg 78,500 76,900 +2.1%\ Roanoke 127,100 124,600 +2.0%\ Charlottesville 71,200 70,100 +1.6%\ Norfolk area 587,100 579,800 +1.3%\ Northern Va. 760,700 753,200 +1.0%\ Richmond area 466,100 465,900 +0.6%\ Danville 41,000 40,800 +0.5%\ Bristol 33,400 34,000 -1.8%\ State 2,848,700 2,830,200 +0.7%\ \ Source: Va. Employment Commission\