Woburn Coronavirus: City Is Home To 2 Hardest-Hit Industries

WOBURN, MA — Woburn is home to large concentrations of two of the four Massachusetts industries hardest hit by the new coronavirus, according to a new study by the Pioneer Institute. The town has the fourth-most construction workers of any municipality in the state, and also ranks in the top 10 in retail.

Those two industries, along with health care and hospitality, have suffered the most unemployment due to the outbreak, according to the institute's analysis of state unemployment data. Together, they make up more than half of the unemployment claims filed in March.

Woburn has thousands of people working in construction and retail. The largest number, 5,882, work in the retail industry, according to 2018 data gathered by the Institute. That ranks 10th among all municipalities in the states.

The town comes in fourth with 3,016 construction jobs. Another 2,821 jobs are at stake in hospitality, which includes restaurants and hotels, and 4,278 are in health care.

Together, nearly 16,000 Woburn jobs are in the four hardest-hit sectors. The full study is available here.

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Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.