Economy

When Central Massachusetts companies look to fill software, programming or research jobs, they’re increasingly looking to foreign labor under an immigrant work program called H-1B.

With the population in Massachusetts, and across the country, aging, the demand is growing for all sorts of health services, and as is the need to find people for these jobs.

As the population in and around Worcester has diversified in recent years, with more newcomers not so fluent in English, the medical community has taken what was once almost an afterthought – interpreter assistance – and made it an essential service.

The Massachusetts unemployment rate remained steady at 2.9% in October, keeping its place in the upper third nationally.

The New England Center for Children has a presence in 18 countries and is focusing on continued expansion to serve more children with autism.

How can businesses, especially smaller ones, handle the effects of tariff increases?

Worcester County trailed state and national averages in employment growth in the first quarter but did better on wage growth, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Tuesday.

The latest economic warning signals were sent Tuesday by the Institute for Supply Management, which reported that economic activity in the manufacturing sector contracted in September for the second straight month.

Employment declined across the Worcester metropolitan area in the first half of the year, and an index compiled by Assumption College calls for a rebound in the months ahead.

The Worcester metropolitan area eked out positive job growth by the slimmest of margins in July after a year of falling employment numbers.