Vermont's unemployment rate jumped to a fifteen-year high in September, according to an announcement by the Department of Labor on Tuesday.

The jobless rate in the Green Mountain State rose to 5.2 percent in September, spiking three tenths of a percent from August's 4.9 percent rate. Though still below the national average, the unemployment rate in Vermont has not been this high since June, 1993.

"The nation's housing and financial services crisis continues to impact Vermont's labor market," said Patricia Moulton Powden, commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor.

One year ago, unemployment was 1.3 percent lower.

Newport and Rutland are among the hardest hit areas of the state, while Hartford is feeling the effects of the economic downturn least.

The construction, manufacturing, and leisure and hospitality sectors of the economy all shed jobs between September and August, while the percent of state and local government jobs grew because of the beginning of the school year.