The Alexander City Outlook

August unemployment rates an improvement for county, state jobless rate increases

Staff Report

While the state’s unemployment rate increased last month, Tallapoosa County had several more people employed than in July.

Alabama’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate rose to 6 percent in August, a slight rise over July’s 5.7 percent. Tallapoosa County, however, went from 5.7 percent in July to 5.5 percent last month.

“New entrants into the state’s labor force, as well as Alabamians re-entering the labor force, may be significant factors in the jobless rate rising from 5.7 percent in July to 6.0 percent in August,” said Phyllis Kennedy, director of the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations. “As the economy improves, it’s not unusual to see more people looking for jobs who were formally discouraged.”

The state’s unemployment rate represents 130,500 unemployed Alabamians. Tallapoosa County’s 5.5 percent rate indicates 1,090 people are unemployed and 18,630 are employed. In August of 2003, Tallapoosa County had 6.3 percent of its residents unemployed.

According to the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations, in the past year there has been a gain of 7,800 jobs in wage and salary employment. The majority of annual growth has been in trade, transportation and utilities at 3,800, construction at 2,900, professional and business services at 2,300, educational and health services at 1,800 and government at 1,300. Manufacturing sector losses total 1,500 and the information sector lost 1,200.