Jobless rate down for first time in months

By Staff
Jonathan Willis
Franklin County’s unemployment rate dipped in February, marking the first time the jobless rate has declined in several months.
The rate dropped from January’s high of 13.4 percent to 12.9 percent last month.
The figure represents 63 residents who no longer filed for unemployment. According to data released Friday, 1,601 county residents were without a job in February.
Employment statewide in Alabama increased for the first time in three months during February according to the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations.
Director Tom Surtees announced Friday that wage and salary employment in the state
increased by 11,300 over the month with the majority of the monthly upturn resulting
from employment gains in professional and business services, government, leisure and
hospitality, manufacturing and educational and health services.
Surtees also announced that Alabama’s unemployment rate for February remains
unchanged at 11.1 percent. This rate represents 227,717 unemployed persons.
“We are starting to see some consistent signs that our economy has begun a rebound,”
Surtees said.
“Our state showed employment gains for the first time in three months. In
addition, new unemployment benefit claims have fallen 61 percent since the third week of
January,” said Surtees.
The number of people filing new claims in February 2010 is estimated to be 25,000.
Comparatively, new claims for February 2009 were 41,000, while new claims in
February 2008 were 20,000.
“We’re seeing nearly half the amount of people signing up for unemployment assistance
this year than we were a year ago,” Surtees said.
“We are hopeful that this is a positive sign, pointing towards some relief from this recession.”
The counties with the lowest unemployment rates were: Madison at 8.3 percent, Shelby at 8.5 percent and Coffee at 8.5 percent.
The counties with the highest unemployment rates were Wilcox at 27 percent, Monroe at 21.4 percent and Conecuh at 20.3 percent.