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 graphic
The unemployment rate in Highland County fell in July to 5.5 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 17,100 members of the force employed and 1,000 unemployed. The numbers are not seasonally adjusted.
Of the 88 counties in Ohio, Highland County is ranked 24th in terms of the highest unemployment rate in the state, tied with one other county.
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 3.2 percent in Mercer County to a high of 7.4 percent in Jackson County.
According to ODJFS, unemployment rose in 11 Ohio counties, fell in 73 and stayed the same in four.
The state had six counties at or below 3.8 percent unemployment in July: Mercer County at 3.2 percent; Holmes County at 3.4 percent; Putnam County at 3.6 percent; and Auglaize County at 3.8 percent.
The state had six counties at or above 6.5 percent unemployment in July: Lucas County at 7.4 percent; Meigs and Monroe counties at 7.1 percent; Jefferson County at 7.0 percent; Athens County at 6.9 percent; and Noble County at 6.5 percent.
Of the six counties contiguous to Highland County, Ross County had 4.3 percent unemployment in July, Fayette County had 4.7 percent, Brown County had 5.4 percent, Clinton County had 5.4 percent, Pike County had 5.7 percent and Adams County had 5.9 percent.
Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.
