Ohio counties’ jobless rate increases

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

January was not a good month for unemployment in Ohio, with every one of the state’s 88 counties reporting significant increases in the jobless rate during the month.

In Van Wert County, January’s unemployment rate increased 1.5 percent, from 7 percent to 8.5 percent, over December 2012. The rate was only a half-percent under last January’s 9 percent unemployment rate (click here for a map that includes more information).

Neighboring counties saw similar increases. Mercer County, the county with the lowest jobless rate in the state, nevertheless saw unemployment increase from 3.9 percent in December 2012 to 5.3 percent in January. Auglaize County’s jobless rate increased 1.5 percent, from 4.8 percent to 6.3 percent; Putnam County saw an increase of 2 percent, from 5.4 percent to 7.4 percent; Paulding County’s unemployment rate rose from 6.2 percent to 8.0 percent; while Allen County saw a 2.1 percent increase in unemployment, from 7.0 percent to 9.1 percent.

Van Wert County’s workforce numbers, as compiled by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, in cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, also showed some significant changes. The county’s labor force decreased 200 people, from 14,000 to 13,800, while the number of employed county residents also dropped, from 13,000 in December 2012 to 12,600 in January. The number of unemployed county residents increased 200, from 1,000 to 1,200 (click here for labor force estimates for all 88 Ohio counties).

Statewide, January unemployment rates ranged from Mercer County’s low of 5.3 percent to a high of 15.3 percent in Pike County. The comparable rate for the state was 8.4 percent in January.

Other counties with an unemployment rate at or below 7.0 percent included Auglaize County, Delaware (5.8 percent), Holmes (6.0 percent), Union (6.6 percent), Franklin (6.8 percent) and Hancock (7.0 percent).

Other than Pike County, other Ohio counties with jobless rates at or above 13.0 percent included Adams, Meigs and Morgan (14.4 percent), Ottawa (13.9 percent), Huron (13.8 percent), Vinton (13.6 percent), and Monroe (13.1 percent).