A mixed report of the state’s unemployment rates Thursday showed little change between September and October in the tri-county area, though rates remained substantially better than the prior year’s.
New Hanover County posted a 7.5 percent unemployment rate in October. That’s one-tenth of a percentage point higher than the previous month; it’s 1.2 percentage points better than October 2012’s figure, according to Thursday’s report from the N.C. Division of Employment Security.
The report’s authors say year-to-year figures present a clearer picture as monthly jobless estimates are subject to seasonal patterns.
In Brunswick County, a 7.7 percent rate for October compares to September’s 7.8 percent. In October 2012, the rate was 9.6 percent, nearly 2 percentage points higher.
Pender County experienced 8.6 percent unemployment in October, down from 8.7 percent the prior month and from 9.8 percent in the prior year.
The tri-county average was 7.7 percent, unchanged from a month earlier but 1.4 percentage points lower than in October 2012.
The numbers are drawn from labor force estimates and do not account for residents who have quit looking for jobs.
Thursday’s report was affected by the recent government shutdown; September’s jobless rates were not released as scheduled and were included in revised form in the latest release.
Overall for October, unemployment rates fell in 56 of North Carolina’s 100 counties, increased in 30 and held steady in 14.
The state’s highest rate: 14.4 percent, Scotland County.
The lowest: 4.7 percent, Chatham County.
The statewide rate was 7.5 percent.
“When compared to the same month last year, not seasonally adjusted unemployment rates decreased in all 100 counties,” the report stated.
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Past story: Jobless rates decrease locally and across state
This story was modified after initial publication to clarify that New Hanover County’s October unemployment rate was one-tenth of a percentage point higher than it was in September.
