Unemployment jumps to 3.5%

Unemployment has been historically low.

Jay County’s rate saw it’s biggest jump in more than six years in January.

The local unemployment rate went up by 0.7 percentage points, climbing to 3.5 percent according to estimates Indiana Department of Workforce Development released Tuesday.

The increase was the largest since another 0.7-percentage-point jump to 7.6 percent from 6.9 percent in 2013. The rate has generally been trending down since hitting a high of 13 percent in 2010 during the Great Recession.

Jay County’s 3.5-percent rate is its highest since March 2019. It had been 3 percent or lower every month in between, hitting a low of 2.4 percent in September.

The mark tied Jay County for the 39th-lowest rate amongst Indiana’s 92 counties. The county was 36th-lowest in December and had fared as well as 29th-lowest in August.

Local unemployment remains slightly below the state average, which came in at 3.6 percent in January.

Hamilton County posted the state’s lowest employment rate at 2.6 percent. LaGrange, Dubois and Boone counties were next at 2.7 percent.

Crawford County had the highest unemployment rate in the state for January at 6.1 percent. Vermillion County was next at 5.8 percent.

Only five counties came in at 5 percent or higher.

Area rates are as follows:

Adams County: 3 percent, up 0.6 percentage points, t-12th lowest

Blackford County: 4.7 percent, up 0.8 percentage points, t-10th highest.

Delaware County: 4.2 percent, up 0.7 percentage point, t-19th highest.

Jay County: 3.5 percent, up 0.7 percentage points, t-39th lowest.

Randolph County: 4.5 percent, up 0.7 percentage points, 13th highest.

Wells County: 3.2 percent, up 0.7 percentage points, t-20th lowest.