The Fourth Quarter Tri Cities Labor Market Report Is In, And The News Isn’t Very Good. Especially When It Comes To The Number Of People Working. Area Employment Fell 4.5 Percent To Over 221-Thousand – A Loss Of Over 10-Thousand Jobs Compared To The Same Period In 2008. East Tennessee State University Economist Dr. Step Hipple Says He Is Seeing Some Positive Indicators That The Economy Is On The Right Path To Recovery With Production, Housing Construction, And Retails Sales All Up During The Fourth Quarter Of Last Year.