Analysis: When Customers Return, So Will Jobs

Massachusetts has just recorded its highest unemployment figure in almost 16 years.

The latest state numbers show 4,900 job losses in January caused the rate to rise to 7.4 percent. That's up a percentage point since December, and it moves Massachusetts closer to the national number of 7.6 percent.

To decipher the statistics and give us a sense of what lies ahead for Massachusetts, we turn to Mike Goodman. He's director of Economic and Public Policy research at The UMass Donahue Institute.