Jobless rate in Highlands increases to 11.6 percent

The unemployment rate in Highlands County increased slightly in September.

According to the Agency for Workforce Innovation, the percentage of unemployed in Highlands was 11.6 percent last month. The rate was 11.4 percent in August.

It was 8.4 percent in September 2008.

Florida's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for September 2009 is 11 percent. This represents 1,012,000 jobless out of a labor force of 9,193,000. The unemployment rate is up 0.2 percentage point from the revised August rate of 10.8 percent and is up 4.3 percentage points from the September 2008 rate.

The state's current unemployment rate is 1.2 percentage points higher than the national unemployment rate of 9.8 percent. The last time the unemployment rate was as high as the September rate was October1975 when the rate was also 11 percent.

The September 2009 job loss continues the trend of annual declines that began in August 2007. Industries losing the most jobs are: trade, transportation, and utilities; professional and business services; and construction. These three industries account for more than two-thirds of the job losses in the state. Healthcare has been Florida's only growth sector for most of 2009.

"The recovery is coming slowly, but it is coming," said Agency for Workforce Innovation Director Cynthia R. Lorenzo. "The latest unemployment figures confirm that the economic downturn continues to impact a significant number of Floridians and businesses. However, a reduction in employers announcing closings or large-scale layoffs is a positive sign of Florida's growing economic stability."

One indication that Florida's economy is beginning to stabilize is the reduction of Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) notices. The notices are submitted by employers to the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation as required by federal law. WARN notices received by the agency decreased over the past several months from a peak of 36 WARN notices in March 2009 to seven notices received in September.

There were no notices submitted during the week of Oct 5 - 9, 2009. The last time the agency experienced a week with no notices was a year ago the week of Sept. 29 - Oct. 3, 2008.