Kentucky reports pre-pandemic unemployment rates
(The Center Square) – Figures released Thursday by the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet show nearly all the state’s regions have unemployment rates lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 14 of the 15 area development districts (ADD) across the state, the unemployment rate was below the rate of February 2020, the last full month before the COVID-19 emergency began.
Statewide, the rate, unadjusted seasonally, was 3.8%. That’s compared with a 5.7% unadjusted rate nationwide. A year ago, the unadjusted statewide rate was 16.7%.
The only region with a higher rate in April compared with pre-pandemic numbers was the Kentuckiana Regional Planning and Development District, which includes the Louisville area. It posted a 4.0% rate for April compared with a 3.6% rate in February 2020.
The lowest rate by district was 3.3% in the Bluegrass and Northern Kentucky ADDs.
Big Sandy, located in eastern Kentucky, posted the highest rate at 6%, but even that was below the 8% rate the state reported in February 2020.
On a county basis, the lowest jobless rate was 2.8% in Cumberland and Woodford counties. Six more counties – Carlisle, Green, Oldham, Scott, Taylor and Todd – each posted a 2.9% rate.
The highest rate was in Magoffin County, which reported a 10.3% unemployment rate. Martin County, at 7.4%, and Harlan County, at 7.1%, were the only other counties where the rate exceeded 7 percent.
The cabinet noted that rated by county provided sample sizes too small to adjust for seasonal events, such as weather changes and holidays.
The state reported last week a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 4.7%, down from the 16.9% rate reported in April 2020.
The national adjusted rate was 6.1%.
In a separate survey, however, the state announced the number of seasonally adjusted jobs decreased by 2,200 in April from March, even as the unemployment rate fell.
Mike Clark, director of the University of Kentucky Center for Business and Economic Research, said the drop in jobs indicates businesses still face challenges as they try to reopen.
“While restrictions are being eased, businesses across the nation are wrestling with changing consumer spending patterns and supply change disruptions in the wake of the pandemic,” he said. “Many manufacturing firms have experienced challenges acquiring key inputs such as semiconductor chips. As a result, they have not been able to ramp up production and employment as quickly as they might have otherwise.”
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