Indiana’s unemployment rate stands at 3.2 percent for November and remains lower than the national rate of 3.5 percent. The monthly unemployment rate is a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicator that reflects the number of unemployed people seeking employment within the prior four weeks as a percentage of the labor force.
Marshall County’s November unemployment rate increased slightly from their October rate of 2.8 with a 3.1 rate. They are ranked 41st of the 92 counties in Indiana. Looking back over the past several months you’ll see Marshall County’s rates fairly steady. September was 2.7; August 3.0; July 3.4 and June 2.8. The best way to compare unemployment figures is from year to year for the same month. In 2018 the county’s November rate was 3.4; 2017 it was 3.0; while in 2016 it was 3.3 and in 2015 it was 3.9.
Taking a looking at the counties surrounding Marshall you will find Starke County sitting 4th on the list with a rate of 4.0. Last month they were 10th on the list of counties with an October rate of 3.5. Saint Joseph County is 20th on the list with a rate of 3.5. In October they had a rate of 3.4.
LaPorte County moved up to 7th with a rate of 3.9 a slight increase from the 3.5 they had in October. Elkhart County is sitting in 62nd place with a rate of 2.8, the same rate they had last month. Fulton County jumped from 35th in October to 46th in November with a rate of 3.0. Kosciusko County is 59th on the list of counties with a rate of 2.9 while Pulaski is 43rd with a rate of 3.1.
Indiana’s labor force had a net increase of 346 over the previous month. This was a result of an increase of 308 unemployed residents and an increase of 38 employed residents. Indiana’s total labor force, which includes both Hoosiers employed and those seeking employment, stands at 3.38 million, and the state’s 64.4 percent labor force participation rate remains above the national rate of 63.2 percent.
Learn more about how unemployment rates are calculated here: http://www.hoosierdata.in.gov/infographics/employment-status.asp.
