Unemployment rate matches 2015

A year later, the unemployment picture remains the same.
Jay County’s unemployment rate was the same last month — 5.7 percent — as it was in February 2015 according to estimates Indiana Department of Workforce Development released Monday. The rate represented a 0.6 percentage point increase over January.
The rate in Jay County was at its highest since hitting 5.7 percent, later revised to 5.8 percent, a year ago. Unemployment hovered below 5 percent for the final seven months of 2015 and was at 5.1 percent in January.
Jay, Randolph and Blackford counties all saw increases of at least half a percentage point last month while Adams, Delaware and Wells counties had smaller increases.
Indiana had an increase of 0.3 percentage points to 5.4 percent. Meanwhile, the national average came in at 5.2 percent, which was down 0.1 percentage points from January.
IDWD commissioner Steven J. Braun touted in the increase in the labor force, which has seen 35,682 Hoosiers find new employment this year.
“In the past two months, more than 35,000 Hoosiers rejoined the labor force and found employment due to the strong Hoosier economy,” he said. “This growth is even more impressive when compared to the 11,376 individuals who joined the labor force in January and February of 2015.”
In the six-county area, Adams and Wells counties continued to be among the state’s leaders. The rate went up by 0.2 percentage points in Adams County, but still remained tied for the fifth-lowest in the state with Boone, Elkhart and Hendricks counties at 4.2 percent. Wells County was right behind, coming in with the ninth-lowest rate at 4.3 percent.
Hamilton County again had the lowest rate in the state at 3.7 percent, followed by Dubois (3.9), LaGrange (4) and Bartholomew (4.1) counties.
The counties with the two highest rates swapped places again, this time with Greene County posting the top number at 8.8 percent. Vermillion County, which had the highest rate in January and second-highest behind Greene County in December, was No. 2 again at 8.5 percent.
Area unemployment rates are as follows:
Adams County: 4.2 percent, up 0.2 percentage points, t-fifth lowest.
Blackford County: 7.2 percent, up 0.6 percentage points, 14th highest.
Delaware County: 6.2 percent, up 0.3 percentage points, t-23rd highest.
Jay County: 5.7 percent, up 0.6 percentage points, t-41st highest.
Randolph County: 6.2 percent, up 0.7 percentage points, t-23rd highest.
Wells County: 4.3 percent, up 0.1 percentage points, ninth lowest.