Saturday, June 21, 2008

State jobless rate jumps to 6.3% in May


Ohio's unemployment rate jumped more than half a percentage point in May to its highest level in nearly five years, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services reported Friday.

Unemployment data for May shows the state's jobless rate ticked up to 6.3 percent in May, up from 5.6 percent in April. The last time the state's unemployment rate stood as high was in July 2003.

The jobless rate a year ago was 5.6 percent.

The department attributed the sharp rise to an increase in Ohioans who began searching for jobs, re-entering the labor force. The number of unemployed Ohio workers grew 13 percent to 380,000, up from 335,000 in April, while the labor force grew by about 10,000 people over the month, pushing past 6 million.

The state saw the largest employment gains in educational and health services jobs along with the leisure and hospitality business. Small employment declines occurred in the information, financial and government sectors.

The national jobless rate jumped half a percent to 5.5 percent in May, up from 5 percent in April.

The Department of Job and Family Services expects to release metro-area and county-level unemployment statistics June 24. June unemployment figures will be released July 18.

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