September jobless rates up across Miami Valley

Jobless rates rose across the Miami Valley last month, mirroring the statewide trend, as the labor market continued to cool along with temperatures this fall.

In Dayton, the September unemployment rate climbed to 5.8 percent from 5.5 percent in August as the number of unemployed reached 3,400. The September rate for Dayton was also higher than a year ago when it was 5.3 percent, according to figures released Tuesday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

The trend was the same for most cities and counties in the local area, including the area’s most populous county, Montgomery, where the September unemployment rate hit 4.9 percent, up from 4.6 percent in the previous month, and 4.5 percent in the same month a year ago. The number of unemployed in Montgomery County stood at 12,400 last month.

Miami and Greene counties also saw their jobless rates jump last month as as employers pumped the brakes on hiring. Unemployment in Miami County rose to 4.4 percent from 4 percent in August and 3.9 percent last September. Meanwhile, Greene County posted a September unemployment rate of 4.4 percent, compared to 4.2 percent in August and 4 percent a year ago.

RELATED: Ohio lost 3,100 jobs in September

Overall, September unemployment rates increased in 80 of Ohio’s 88 counties last month, declined in six and remained unchanged in two. Jobless rates ranged from a low of 3.2 percent in Mercer County to a high or 9.2 percent in Monroe County.

City and county rates are not adjusted for seasonal hiring trends, and, therefore, are not comparable to the state rate, which edged up to 4.8 percent last month from 4.7 percent in August, the state jobs department reported Friday.

Ohio’s rate was still lower than the national unemployment rate, which also inched up to 5 percent after holding steady at 4.9 percent for the prior three months, the U.S. Labor Department reported earlier this month.

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