No work for students graduating local colleges According to the Lori Regional Employment Center, there are presently 13,115 individuals seeking work in the northern region of Armenia. In Vanadzor, the regional capital, unemployment stands at 11%. The Center reports that despite the high unemployment rate, there are many jobs in the area that go unfilled. For example, job openings exist in the service sector – waiters, cooks, barmen, etc. But it appears that Lori’s unemployed don’t want to work at such menial and low-paying jobs. There is also a demand for doctors in the region, but there are few takers. Nobody wants to work for low wages in some village. Then too, there’s the problem of creating suitable jobs for the hundreds of college graduates each year. The region lacks any industrial production. Before the 1988 earthquake there were many factories operating in Lori. None have been reopened since. Due to the lack of jobs, migration is a continuing problem in the region. Particularly hard hit are the communities of Spitak and Tashir, where the soil is also poor for farming.