Unemployment Rates Drop

Article by KPC Media | KPC News | April 23, 2019 

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana’s unemployment rate stands at 3.6 percent for March, which was one-tenth of a percentage point greater than February, reports the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.

While the state rate declined slightly, local unemployment rates declined from two-tenths of a percentage point to four-tenths of a percentage point.

With a March unemployment rate of 3.0 percent, Steuben County was the lowest in the area and was tied for seventh lowest county in the state. Steuben dropped to 3.0 percent from 3.4 percent in February.

LaGrange and DeKalb counties tied for 11th lowest unemployment rates in the state at 3.1 percent. DeKalb improved to 3.1 percent in March from 3.4 percent in February while LaGrange improved to 3.1 percent from 3.3 percent.

Noble County improved to 3.4 percent in March from 3.6 percent in February.

Both Allen and Whitley counties improved to 3.5 percent in March, to 3.5 percent from 3.7 percent in Allen County and 3.5 percent from 3.6 percent in Whitley.

While the state rate inched up one-tenth of a percentage point, it remains lower than the national rate of 3.8 percent. With the exception of one month when it was equal (October 2014), Indiana’s unemployment rate now has been below the U.S. rate for more than five years.

Indiana’s labor force had a net increase of 6,769 over the previous month. This was a result of an increase of 2,634 unemployed residents and an increase of 4,135 employed residents. Indiana’s total labor force, which includes both Hoosiers employed and those seeking employment, stands at 3.41

million, and the state’s 65.3 percent labor force participation rate remains above the national rate of 63.0 percent.

The monthly unemployment rate is a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicator that reflects the number of unemployed people seeking employment within the prior four weeks as a percentage of the labor force. 

Article source: https://www.kpcnews.com/heraldrepublican/article_6c8f32ff-c57f-5821-b84a-3dcdc6d9ff7f.html