COLUMBUS – Unemployment in central Ohio last month dropped by 7 percent to its lowest level since November.
At 3.8 percent the 10-county Columbus region boasted the lowest jobless rate of any of Ohio’s major metropolitan areas. Columbus, at 3.8 percent, had the lowest rate of any of Ohio’s major cities, according to data released Tuesday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
Nearly 20,000 people joined the regional work force in the last year and they all found work, with some jobs to spare. The area’s employment figure of 1.049 million was the highest since July’s 1.051 million and 20,900 higher than the figure in February 2018.
At 3.2 percent, Delaware County shared the honor of the state’s lowest unemployment rate with Holmes County while Noble County, at 8.8 percent, was the state’s highest.
Ohio’s unemployment rate in February fell to 4.6 percent. (see graph above).