Local Employment Numbers Improve

May 18, 2013

The latest jobs numbers released Friday show the unemployment rate fell dramatically in the North Escambia area.

Escambia County’s unemployment rate fell from 6.9  percent in March to 6.4 percent for April.  There were 628 fewer people reported unemployed during the period, for a total Escambia County unemployment of 9,005 people. One year ago, unemployment in Escambia County was 8.0 percent.

Santa Rosa County unemployment decreased from 6.2 percent in March  to 5.8  percent in April. Santa Rosa County had a total of 4,334 persons  reported to be still unemployed. The year-ago unemployment rate in Santa Rosa County was 7.4 percent.

In Escambia County, Alabama, unemployment dropped from 8.5  percent in March to 7.4 percent in April. That represented 1,112  people unemployed in the county during the month. The year-ago rate was 7.8 percent.

The jobless numbers released by Florida and Alabama do not include persons that have given up on finding a job and are no longer reported as unemployed.

Florida’s unemployment rate dropped to 7.2 percent in April, down from 7. 5 percent a month earlier, giving Gov. Rick Scott more fodder for his claim that the administration’s efforts are working to return the economy to pre-recession success.

The new rate is the lowest it has been since September of 2008, early in the recession and marks several months of continued recovery. The improvement also, however, tracks national gains in employment, though the state’s jobless rate is now below the national rate of 7.5 percent.

“Florida’s families are getting back to work and our state’s economy is growing,” Scott said in a statement. “With 16,700 new private sector jobs added last month and an unemployment rate that continues to decline, Florida is once again below the national average at 7.2 percent.”

Alabama’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, at 6.9percent in April, was down from March’s rate of 7.2 percent and was below the year-ago rate of 7.4 percent.

Comments

3 Responses to “Local Employment Numbers Improve”

  1. David Huie Green on May 19th, 2013 9:48 am

    REGARDING:
    “if benefits run out they will claim you are no longer “unemployed” Also let’s remember benefits were cut back in order to fudge the numbers to make it seem better.”

    Saying a false thing over and over does not make it true. For example, claiming unemployment is linked to unemployment benefits is a false statement. Unemployment benefits may be linked to unemployment but not the other way around.
    A person who is seeking employment is considered unemployed whether or not unemployment benefits are ever paid.
    Further proof — if it were needed — is that unemployment predates any form of benefits by centuries.

    David for truth

  2. huh on May 19th, 2013 1:34 am

    If you give up finding a job or if benefits run out they will claim you are no longer “unemployed” Also lets remember benefits were cut back in order to fudge the numbers to make it seem better.

  3. wet dog on May 18th, 2013 2:20 pm

    I LIKE the italicized sentence where it states that those who either ran out of unemployment benefits, or quit searching for work are not included.

    Thank You for elucidating the report. THAT is important!