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STATE'S HIGHEST JOBLESS RATES
1. Perry County (23.9%)
2. Scott County (18.3%)
3. Lauderdale County (18.2%)
4. Monroe County (17.9%)
5. Green County (15.3%)
6. White County (15.2%)
6. Van Buren County (15.2%)
8. Henderson County (15.1%)
9. Lewis County (14.8%)
10. Marshall County (14.6%)
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Scott County’s unemployment rate shrank in April for the first time this calendar year, and total employment rose for the first time in months, the latest round of employment data show.
According to figures released Thursday by the Dept. of Labor & Workforce Development, Scott County was one of 59 counties across the state with a decreased unemployment rate in April. Only 29 counties posted increased jobless rates in April, but the statewide unemployment rate increased three-tenths of a percentage point to 9.9%, just short of topping the double-digit plateau for the first time in decades.
Locally, the jobless rate declined from 18.8% in March to 18.3% in April. The decrease was partially due to workers with expired unemployment benefits being removed from the rolls, but the number of employed workers increased in April for the first time in months. The increase was slight, from 6,810 to 6,820. There were 1,530 claiming unemployment benefits in April.
Across the region, Anderson, Campbell and Morgan counties posted increased unemployment rates, while Fentress and Pickett counties posted decreased rates.
Anderson and Morgan counties each saw unemployment increase by two-tenths of a percentage point (to 9.6% and 11.4%, respectively), while Campbell County’s jobless rate climbed three-tenths of a point to 12.7%.
Pickett County saw unemployment numbers decrease substantially, down 3.2 points to 13.7%. Fentress County also posted a sizable decrease, down a percentage point to 12.7%.
Scott County continued to post the state’s second-highest unemployment rate, behind only Perry County’s shrinking jobless rate of 23.9%. Lauderdale County showed an unemployment rate of 18.2%, while Monroe County’s unemployment rate was 17.9%.
Lincoln and Williamson counties posted the state’s lowest unemployment rate, at 6.3%, while Moore County’s unemployment rate was 7.2%.
Knox County led metropolitan counties with a 7.4% jobless rate, up one-tenth of a point from March. Davidson County followed with an 8.0% unemployment rate, also up a tenth of a point. Hamilton County’s jobless rate increased from 8.0% to 8.3%, while Shelby County’s was unchanged at 8.9%.
