COLUMBUS – Ohio’s unemployment rate continued its decline in July as the state’s economy slowly recovered from months of business closings and layoffs.
The jobless rate last month was 8.9%, down from a revised 11.0% in June as employers added 62,700 jobs.
The 359,585 filings for continued jobless claims last week was 64,087 fewer than one month ago, the state reported Thursday.
“While we gained more than 60,000 jobs last month, we have much more work to do to get back to our pre-COVID employment levels. The Senate has worked hard to reopen the state…We will be in session in the coming weeks and we will continue to advocate for small businesses and a fully reopened economy. We will not rest until the economy has fully recovered and every Ohioan has a well-paying job,” Ohio Senate President Larry Obhof (R-Medina) said.
The number of Ohioans who were working rose from a revised 5.04 million in June to 5.1 million. The number of workers unemployed workers fell by 133,000 to 503,000, according to data released Friday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.
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The number of unemployed Ohioans has increased by 262,000 in the past 12 months as the shutdown pushed the unemployment rate up from 4.2% in July 2019.
Job gains were recorded in the service sector, government and construction, which added 66,700 jobs while manufacturers, transportation, trade and utilities shed 5,500 jobs.
More than five months after the viral outbreak erupted, the U.S. economy is still weak despite recent gains as some businesses reopen and some sectors like housing and manufacturing have rebounded.
The U.S. unemployment rate for July was 10.2%, down from 11.1% in June.