COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio’s unemployment rate has dropped to 4.8 percent, the fourth consecutive monthly decrease for the measure of jobs activity.
Ohio’s unemployment rate for November was 5 percent — the state’s lowest since 2001. It had dropped from 5.3 percent in October and 5.6 percent in September. The state’s unemployment rate for December 2013 was 7.2 percent.
The state’s rate has remained below the nation’s, which fell to 5.6 percent in December.
One research group claims the decline in the jobless rate makes Ohio’s recovery from the recession look better than it is.
Policy Matters Ohio calls growth represented by the 5,100 jobs gained in December “mediocre.”
The nonpartisan organization says the state’s total job growth for 2014 was 1.2 percent while the nationwide rate was 2.1 percent. While the nation as a whole recovered all the jobs lost in the economic downturn last year and added 1.4 percent, Ohio is needs more than 87,000 jobs to break even but added only 6,1500, Policy Matters Ohio researcher Hannah Halbert said.
Noting a drop of 214,000 people from the state’s work force since the recession, Halbert says the state should increase support for higher education.
Ohio had 287,000 unemployed workers in November, down 18,000 compared with October, according to The Friday morning report from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
Job gains in manufacturing, construction, leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, and educational and health services more than offset losses elsewhere in the service sector and government.