The unemployment rate in Highland County climbed in June to 5.1 percent, a rise of 1.4 percent from the previous month, according to figures released Tuesday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS).

The ODJFS said the labor force in Highland County has 17,000 workers, with 16,200 members of the force employed and 900 unemployed. The numbers are not seasonally adjusted.

Of the 88 counties in Ohio, Highland County is ranked 18th in terms of the highest unemployment rate in the state, tied with two 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 2.9 percent in Mercer County to a high of 6.4 percent in Cuyahoga County.

The state had 11 counties at or below 3.5 percent unemployment in June: Mercer County at 2.9 percent; Holmes, Putnam and Wyandot counties at 3.0 percent; Auglaize, Delaware and Union counties at 3.3 percent; Hancock County at 3.4 percent; and Madison, Preble and Wayne counties at 3.5 percent.

The state had four counties at or above 6.0 percent unemployment in June: Cuyahoga County at 6.4 percent, Monroe County at 6.1 percent and Lorain and Meigs counties at 6.0 percent.

According to ODJFS, unemployment increased in all 88 counties in Ohio in June.

Of the six counties contiguous to Highland County, Ross County had 3.9 percent unemployment in June, Fayette County had 4.1 percent, Brown County had 4.6 percent, Clinton County had 4.7 percent, Adams County had 5.2 percent and Pike County had 5.5 percent.

Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.

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.

https://www.timesgazette.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/33/2022/07/web1_JuneUnemployment.jpgThis 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