Dec. 4, 2008-For October Patrick County, 22 people were dropped from the jobless rolls, leaving a total of 626 looking for work. That lowered the county’s jobless rate by 0.2 percent to 6.8 percent, statistics show. The county now ranks 15th among local
Thursday, December 4, 2008, Martinsville Bulletin, page 1
By MICKEY POWELL - Bulletin Staff Writer
Martinsville continues to have the state’s highest unemployment as more residents of the city and Henry County were added to the jobless rolls in October, according to Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) figures.
Patrick County’s jobless rate dropped slightly.
Unemployment in Henry County rose 0.2 percent to 8.6 percent in October as the number of county residents seeking jobs rose by 51 to 2,313, figures show. The county ranked fourth out of 134 localities statewide in which the VEC measures unemployment each month.
Martinsville’s jobless rate rose by 0.7 percent to 12.7 percent. The number of city residents seeking jobs climbed by 51 to 814, statistics show.
The combined jobless rate for the Henry County-Martinsville micropolitan area jumped 0.3 percent to 9.4 percent, figures indicate.
In Patrick County, 22 people were dropped from the jobless rolls, leaving a total of 626 looking for work. That lowered the county’s jobless rate by 0.2 percent to 6.8 percent, statistics show. The county now ranks 15th among localities statewide in terms of unemployment.
Patrick County’s jobless rate does not reflect 60 layoffs at Stuart Flooring Corp. that were announced in late November.
Bill Mezger, chief economist for the VEC’s Economic Information Services Division, attributed the jumps in Henry County and Martinsville to lingering effects of permanent layoffs earlier this year, including more than 400 job losses at American of Martinsville.
