This graphic shows how high or low the unemployment rate is in all 88 counties in Ohio. The lighter-colored counties have lower unemployment rates while darker-colored counties have higher unemployment rates.
Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services
The unemployment rate in Highland County rose in June to 6.1 percent, according to figures released by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS).
ODJFS said the labor force in Highland County has 18,000 workers, with 16,900 members of the force employed and 1,100 unemployed. The numbers are not seasonally adjusted.
Of the 88 counties in Ohio, Highland County is ranked 16th in terms of the highest unemployment rate in the state, tied with three other counties.
Seasonal adjustment, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, is a “statistical technique that attempts to measure and remove the influences of predictable seasonal patterns to reveal how employment and unemployment change from month to month.”
It considers the changes in labor market activity because of seasonal events like weather, harvests and major holidays. Because the seasonal events are mostly the same every year, the change in the trends can be eliminated by seasonally adjusting the statistics from month to month. The adjustments allow people to see the underlying trends and other nonseasonal movements, ODJFS said.
The county unemployment rates in Ohio ranged from a low of 3.6 percent in Wyandot County to a high of 8.1 percent in Athens County
According to ODJFS, unemployment rose in 87 Ohio counties and stayed the same in one.
The state had six counties at or below 4.0 percent unemployment in June: Wyandot County at 3.6 percent; Putnam County at 3.7 percent; and Medina County at 3.9 percent.
The state had 10 counties at or above 6.5 percent unemployment in June: Athens County at 8.1 percent; Meigs County at 7.7 percent; Monroe County at 7.5 percent; Jefferson County at 7.3 percent; Auglaize and Noble counties at 6.7 percent; Scioto County at 6.6 percent; and Adams, Coshocton and Jackson counties at 6.5 percent.
Of the six counties contiguous to Highland County, Ross County had 4.7 percent unemployment, Fayette County had 5.1 percent, Brown County 5.8 percent, Clinton County 5.9 percent, Pike County 6.2 percent and Adams County 6.5 percent.
Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.
