Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Jobless Rate Rises

By JOHN MILLER

Unemployment in Nevada County climbed a full percentage point from June to July.

According to information from the Arkansas Employment Security Division (ESD), the numbers went from 6.7 percent to 7.7 percent in the reporting period.

The jobless rate in surrounding counties, for the most part, also rose from June to July.

In Clark County, the figures skyrocketed from June's 3.1 percent to July's 7.4 percent.

Columbia County's jobless rate went from 8.0 to 9.5 percent, while Hempstead County rose from 8.3 to 9.1 percent.

Lafayette County's unemployment numbers had a slight increase from 6.8 to 7.0 percent from June to July.

Ouachita County ventured back into double-digit figures after spending several months in the single-digit category. Ouachita County went from 9.8 to 10.6 percent for the reporting period.

Pike County's rate also increased during the period, from 5.1 to 5.7 percent.

The increase in the unemployment rate played havoc with the rankings.

Montgomery County had the lowest figure at 2.9 percent, while Lee County has the worst jobless problem in Arkansas with 11.9 percent of its work force needing jobs.

Pike County had the lowest unemployment rate in the region, but was ranked 28th in the list.

Lafayette County was next in 42nd place, while Clark County was ranked 45th.

Nevada County entered the listings in 50th, with Hempstead County rated 63rd. Then comes Columbia County in 65th position, while Ouachita County is ranked 69th.

Montgomery County was the lone county in Arkansas with jobless numbers below 3 percent.

Six counties had unemployment rates from 3.0 to 3.9 percent, while 13 fell in the 4.0 to 4.9 bracket.

There were 10 counties registering jobless numbers from 5.0 to 5.9 percent, with 11 falling into the 6.0 to 6.9 percent division.

A total of nine counties were in the 7.0 to 7.9 percent category, with the 8.0 to 8.9 percent range housing 11 counties.

Six counties fall into the 9.0 to 9.9 percent spot, while five are listed in the 10.0 to 10.9 percent bracket.

Three counties have jobless rates of 11.1 to 11.9 percent. They are: Newton (11.1 percent); Searcy (1.2 percent); and Lee (11.9 percent).

Overall, there were eight counties with double-digit unemployment in July.

The rise in unemployment from June to July was anticipated by the ESD, as students and recent graduates continued looking for jobs.

Additionally, some manufacturing plants scheduled vacation shutdowns during July, which put several workers on temporary unpaid leave.

Because of this, the state's unemployment rate rose from 5.2 percent in June to 5.5 percent in July.

Still, the increase was significant as the jobless numbers rose in 64 of Arkansas' 75 counties, while only four saw decreasing figures.

While Arkansas's jobless rate rose, the national figure dropped from 5.0 percent in June to 4.8 percent in July.

A check of the state's five Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), once again shows the Fayetteville-Rogers-Springdale MSA with the lowest jobless rate at 3.5 percent. On the other hand, the Pine Bluff MSA, again, had the highest unemployment numbers at an even 9.0 percent.

The Little Rock-North Little Rock MSA registered 4.3 percent, while Jonesboro's MSA came in at 4.9 percent. The Fort Smith MSA's jobless rate was 5.3 percent.