Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Jobless Rate Steady

By JOHN MILLER Nevada County's unemployment rate remained the same from June to July at 8.7 percent. In fact, the jobless figures in surrounding counties all climbed for the most part. Clark County, still with the lowest rate in the state, was unchanged at 2.8 percent for the recording period, according to information from the Arkansas Employment Security Division. Columbia County's figures inched up from 6.9 percent to 7.0 percent, while Hempstead County's jobless rate jumped almost a full percentage point, from 8.3 to 9.2 percent from June to July. Lafayette County's numbers were bumped from 7.7 percent to 7.8 percent, with Ouachita County climbing back into the double-digit range, going from 9.8 percent in June to July's 10.5 percent. Pike County's unemployment numbers rose from 4.8 percent to 5.7 percent during the period as well. The ESD report states the increase in unemployment was expected as recent graduates continued looking for work and vacation shutdowns put some manufacturing workers on temporary unpaid leave. The jobless numbers rose in 57 of Arkansas' 75 counties, fell in 11 and was the same in seven. Clark and Saline counties had the lowest figures at 2.8 percent, while Randolph County again had the highest unemployment rate at 14.8 percent. There were two counties with jobless figures in the 2.0 to 2.9 range, Clark and Saline. Nine more fell in the 3.0 to 3.9 bracket. The 4.0 to 4.9 area saw 14 counties, while there were 10 counties recording jobless rates rom 5.0 to 5.9 percent. Another 10 counties fell in the 6.0 to 6.9 percent region, with seven reporting jobless figures from 7.0 to 7.9 percent. Nine counties had unemployment numbers between 8.0 and 8.9 percent, while four counties entered the 9.0 to 9.9 percent division. There were 10 counties in Arkansas with double-digit unemployment. St. Francis County's is 10.1 percent, while Izard and Prairie report 10.4 percent numbers. Chicot and Ouachita come in at 10.5 percent, while Desha has 11 percent of its workforce needing jobs. Lee County comes in at 11.3 percent, with Bradley rounding out the 11 percent bracket with 11.4 percent unemployment. Jackson County's rate is 12.8 percent, while Randolph County has almost 15 percent of its citizens needing jobs at 14.8 percent. Clark County is ranked No. 1 in Arkansas, with Pike County (5.7 percent) is rated 33rd. Columbia County comes into the rankings at 46th, with its 7.0 percent figure, while Lafayette County (7.8 percent) is 52nd. Nevada County's 8.7 percent ranks the county 59th in the state, while Hempstead County (9.2 percent) is 63rd. Ouachita County's is ranked 69th with its 10.5 percent figure. Though Arkansas' unemployment rate climbed to 5.3 percent from June to July, it is still below the national average at 5.4 percent. A check of the state's Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) once again shows the Fayetteville-Springdale- Rogers MSA with the lowest jobless rate at 3.2 percent. The highest, again, is Pine Bluff's MSA at 8 percent. The Little Rock-North Little Rock MSA was 3.8 percent, while Fort Smith's MSA reported 5 percent unemployment.