Unemployment rates announced

Marianna; Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for January 2009 is 8.6 percent.  This represents 800,000 jobless out of a labor force of 9,256,000.  The unemployment rate 1.0 percentage point higher than the revised December rate of 7.6 percent and is up 3.6 percentage points from the January 2008 rate.  Florida’s January 2009 unemployment rate is the highest since September 1992, which was 8.9 percent.  The states unemployment rate is 1.0 percentage point higher than the national unemployment rate of 7.6 percent.

Each of the 5 counties that make up the Chipola Regional Workforce Board showed an increase in unemployment.  Calhoun and Holmes showed the largest increase, increasing by 1.2 percent in January 2009.  Liberty County continues to have the lowest unemployment rate in the state, with a rate of 5.5 percent.

Florida’s annual nonagricultural employment rate for November 2008 is -2.6 percent.  The rate represents a loss of 206,900 jobs for November 2007 for a total employment level of 7,823,200.  This is slower that the national rate for November, which is -1.4 percent.  The November 2008 job growth rate continues the trend of negative over-the-year growth that began in September 2007, primarily due to declines in construction.


                                                Jan 2009                      Dec 2008                       Jan 2008

Calhoun                                     7.8                                6.6                                4.2

Holmes                                      7.5                                6.3                                4.3

Jackson                                     6.9                                6.2                                4.3

Liberty                                       5.5                                4.7                                3.2

Washington                               9.5                                 8.8                                5.2