Seasonally adjusted: Ohio's unemployment rate was 5.3 percent in January, down from 5.9 percent in December, according to data released this morning by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Ohio's nonfarm wage and salary employment decreased 14,400 over the month, from 5,445,700 in December, to 5,431,300 in January....
Ten counties had unemployment rates at or above 9.0 percent during January. The counties with the highest rates, other than Monroe (which was 15.9%), were: Pike, 11.1; Morgan, 10.8; Meigs, 10.3; Ottawa, 10.0; Adams, 9.8; Vinton, 9.7, Huron, 9.5; Perry, 9.2; and Muskingum, 9.0 percent....
I don't think that this shows any good news. Ten of Ohio's 88 counties had unemployment at or below 5.0% This means that 78 counties had unemployment rates at 5.1% or higher. Franklin County, which is in Deborah Pryce's 15th district, had an unemployment rate of 5.0% (up from 4.8% from the previous month). If there has been an improvement in jobs and the economy in other states, it isn't happening here.
People in the 15th district are also under employed. Many recent college graduates have had trouble getting jobs here. Young men and women with four year degrees are working as file clerks, cashiers, sales clerks, waitresses, and other jobs which do not require college degrees. Why?
Our corrupt Republican government can't attract businesses to Ohio and Deborah Pryce has done nothing to bring jobs to her home district. The 15th district is located just north of one of the largest colleges in the U.S. (The Ohio State University). You'd think that with such a high number of college educated people in central Ohio that companies would want to locate here. However, without real leadership, nothing gets done.
We have Republican elected officials who are more interested in filling up their campaign chests and jetting off on the private jets of lobbyists than helping their constituents get good paying jobs.