©2011 Galesburg Broadcasting Co.
| Local Unemployment Climbs Above State Rate |
Unemployment is up across the board in the Galesburg area during a month that saw the state's jobless rate fall.
Figures released by the Illinois Department of Employment Security show Galesburg's unemployment rate in August increased to 10.3 percent, up 3-tenths of a point. Knox County's rate has also reached the 10 percent mark compared to 9.9 percent in July. The number of people employed in Knox County dropped by 389 in one month's time.
Unemployment in Warren County climbed to 7.6 percent from 7.3 in July, which helped keep the Galesburg area's rate below 10 percent, at 9.4.
Surrounding counties also recorded higher unemployment rates from July to August. Fulton County's is now 12.6 percent, up 1-tenth, Henderson County's jumped a full percentage point to 10.1 and the rate in Henry County - 9.1 percent - represents an increase of 3-tenths of a percent.
The opposite happened with the state's unemployment rate, which dropped a half-percent to 9.9. The national rate for August was 9.6 percent.
The most recent jobless rates are considerably higher than those from a year ago. Unemployment is up 2.1 percent in the Galesburg area, including a 2.5 percent increase in Knox County. IDES says non-farm payroll jobs in the Galesburg area were down 225, with the biggest losses occurring in manufacturing and construction. The biggest unemployment percentage increase in the region is Fulton County's 5.1 percent..
Statewide, jobless rates in all 12 metropolitan areas came in above previous-year levels for the 27th consecutive month. The Rockford metro has seen the biggest increase - from 9.7 percent in August of 2008 to 15.1 percent last month. |
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| 09 25 09 by Newsroom |
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