Jobless figures spike in all but one county in Lima region: Van Wert sees drop

LIMA — Unemployment increased in all but one of the nine counties in the Lima region during January, despite a decrease in jobless figures statewide.Allen County hit the highest level in the region with 7.0 percent unemployment, up from 6.5 percent in December and 6.7 of January 2007. Van Wert was the only area county that saw unemployment drop, recording a 6.5 percent figure in January and 6.6 percent in December.Ohio’s unemployment rate was 5.5 percent in January, down from 5.8 percent in December, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Ohio’s nonfarm wage and salary employment increased 18,700 over the month, from 5,418,900 in December, to 5,437,600 in January. Job and Family Services Director Helen Jones-Kelley said the numbers are positive news for the state, despite some spikes in some areas..“Ohio’s labor market showed improvement in January,” Jones-Kelley said. “Total employment increased slightly in goods-producing industries and more noticeably in the service-providing industries.” The number of workers unemployed in Ohio in January was 328,000, down from 347,000 in December. The number of unemployed has increased by 6,000 in the past 12 months from 322,000. The January unemployment rate for Ohio was up from 5.4 percent in January 2007. The U.S. unemployment rate for January was 4.9 percent, down from 5.0 percent in December.You can comment on this story at www.limaohio.com.