Ohio’s labor force grew by 25K in 2013.

Ohio’s average annual unemployment rate remained unchanged from 2012 to 2013 at 7.4 percent, but the labor force grew by 25,000 workers, reversing a long-term decline in the number of Ohioans who had a job or were actively seeking work, according to figures released today by the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The number of employed Ohioans grew by 24,000, year-over-year, and Ohio was one of 17 states that saw an increase in its employment-population ratio, or the proportion of the working-age population that is actually employed, according to the BLS report.