Stephens Co. Unemployment Drops Slightly

Stephens County sees its unemployment rate drop slightly to start 2014. State labor department numbers show that Stephens County had a preliminary January unemployment rate of 6.9 percent. That is one-tenth of a percentage point lower than the revised December 2013 rate of 7.0 percent. It is also a full 2.3 percentage points lower than the revised January 2013 unemployment rate of 9.2 percent. The total January labor force for Stephens County was 12,867. Of that, 11,976 people were listed as employed in Stephens County in January and 891 were listed as unemployed. Labor Department figures show that the labor force in Stephens County increased by just over 100 from December to January, but is still about 500 less than it was in January 2013. About 100 more people were employed in Stephens County in January than were in December, while the number of unemployed remained about the same. Meanwhile, approximately 150 fewer people were employed this past January in Stephens County than were employed in January 2013, while the number of unemployed has dropped by about 350. Looking at other area counties, Franklin County’s preliminary unemployment rate stayed the same at 8.2 percent in January; Habersham County saw its preliminary January unemployment rate jump a percentage point to 7.6 percent; and Banks County’s preliminary unemployment rate rose one-tenth of a percentage point in January to 5.5 percent.
Charlie Bauder
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