Document text
County's jobless rate hits 9.4% A huge jump in January pushes the unemployment rate to its highest since '97 Just as some economists argue that the nation's recession is showing signs of turning around, state officials say a 2.9 percent jump in Jackson County's jobless rate is proof the valley will not escape the economic downturn. The county's total nonfarm employment dropped sharply in January, shedding nearly 5,000 jobs and pushing the jobless rate from 6.5 percent to 9.4 percent, according Jean Work, a manager with the Oregon Employment Department's field office in Medford. The rate has not been so high since it reached 10.1 percent in 1997. For two months after a recession officially was declared in Oregon, Southern Oregon enjoyed only slight increases in jobless numbers. The county's unemployment rate in January 2001 was 6.4 percent. OED numbers released Thursday show that most of the jobs lost in January were in seasonal retail positions, although the drop was steeper than expected. Manufacturing employment lost 120 jobs but has lost 1,230 jobs - a 10 percent drop - in the last year. Adding to the recession, a strong dollar, a weak economy in Japan (Oregon's top export destination) and declines in business investment have plagued Oregon manufacturers and exporters, Work said. Some Jackson County employment sectors have shown positive signs in the last year. Health services has added 380 jobs, social services has 420 more positions and "other services" has 220 more jobs. Oregon's unemployment rate increased slightly to 8 percent in January from 7.8 percent in December, but it was almost double the January 2001 rate of 4.2 percent. Unemployment nationwide dropped slightly from 5.8 percent in December to 5.6 percent in January, according to OED figures. Josephine County's jobless rate is worse still than Jackson County's - 11.2 percent of that county's work force was unemployed in January compared to 9.2 percent in December and 8.2 percent in January 2001. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.