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N.C. unemployment falls, industries grow [The Herald-Sun, Durham, N.C. :: ](Herald-Sun (Durham, NC) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) July 30--DURHAM -- The unemployment rate decreased in the Durham-Chapel Hill area from 6.8 percent to 5.1 percent since June of last year, the N.C. Department of Commerce reported today. At 5.5 percent, Durham County has the ninth lowest unemployment rate in North Carolina, with 8,048 unemployed of a 147,390 labor force. Orange County has the fourth lowest, with a 4.9 percent unemployment rate. The North Carolina unemployment rate for June is 6.5 percent. Durham-Chapel Hill had a net employment increase of 1.5 percent since June of last year. Throughout North Carolina, the over-the-year change decreased in 81 counties, increased in 10 and remained unchanged in nine. North Carolina has three counties with rates of 10 percent or above, not seasonally unadjusted. The national average for June is 6.3 percent, down from 7.8 percent a year Earlier, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since May, there was a loss of jobs, mainly due to the seasonality of government employment, said Larry Parker, spokesperson for the N.C. Commerce Department. According to the report, there were 24,209 Unemployment Insurance Initial Claims filed in North Carolina, down from 28,688 last June. Parker said the industries with the most job growth in North Carolina were trade, transportation and utilities, financial activities, and construction and manufacturing. In Durham-Chapel Hill, information industry employment grew by 5.4 percent, and leisure and hospitality increased by 4.5 percent since June 2013. Manufacturing was the only industry decrease since last year, falling by 2.3 percent. Harry Bailes, of information technology company Family Health Network in Research Triangle Park, said there is a better economic climate this year than last for the information industry, especially software developed around health care. "We are expecting to grow pretty quickly," Bailes said. ___ (c)2014 The Herald-Sun (Durham, N.C.) Visit The Herald-Sun (Durham, N.C.) at www.heraldsun.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |