The state of the San Juan County economy going into the holidays

Unemployment rates and monthly job growth figures reported each month typically don't quite add up. While some jobs are left vacant due to economic strain, it doesn't necessarily mean another worker will be heading to the unemployment office.

The Farmington area in September data reported some of the state's worst job market statistics, with an unemployment rate at 8.3 percent and a job growth rate at -4.6 percent.

On this week's edition of Newsmakers, Jasper Welch, director of the San Juan College Business Enterprise Center, offers a better understanding of what those poor job market numbers mean and whether the usual holiday bump in retail sales will be able to shore up continued local losses.