34,700 PEOPLE EMPLOYED IN CAPE COUNTY

A year ago, the unemployment rate in Cape Girardeau County was at one of its lowest points of the year, at 3.9 percent, with more than 35,000 of its work forces employed.

That was in June of 1990. A year later, the unemployment rate had edged up to 5.2 percent, but more than 34,700 people are still employed in Cape County.

"Our labor force in June of 1991 is up some," said Jackie Cecil, of the Job Service Office at Cape Girardeau.

The county's labor force fluctuates between 36,500 to 37,000 from month to month, and in June of this year, it was 36,619.

Cape County, like most counties throughout Missouri, experienced an increase in unemployment during June.

Officials say the higher June unemployment rates are not unusual, due to the addition of many students to the work forces.

For Cape County, the increase from May of '91 was only 0.2 percent, up from the 5 percent of a month ago.

The Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area, traditionally one of the lowest unemployment areas in the state, had an increase of 0.3, from 3.4 in May to 3.7. That compares to 2.7 percent unemployment in the same area a year ago.

An influx of new summer job seekers, including students, put more people in the Missouri labor force in June, helping to drive the state's unemployment rate up 0.3 percentage points, to 7 percent.

"There were two negative factors affecting the June rate," said Donna M. White, director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. "We had an increase in the work force, and there was the continuation of higher unemployment because of the recessionary economy."

Actually, employment in June 2,591,440 was 11,700 more than the May total. But the jobless rate was also higher, 191,044 in June, compared to 180,662 in May.

Nationally, the civilian unemployment rate rose 0.1 percentage point to 7 percent in June with 8.7 million people out of work, the Labor Department reported.

The unemployment rate was 6.9 percent in May. After a sharp drop in total employment last month, the category rose to 116.9 million in June - about the same level as the beginning of the year, the department said.

Analysts pointed to virtually across-the-board gains in the workweek for May and June as a sign the economy was pulling out of its recession, which began last July.

In Southern Illinois, the four southernmost counties recorded increases in unemployment in June, headed by Pulaski County with almost 20 percent (19.5) of its work force without jobs, marking a 4.4 increase over the May total.

Alexander County, which typically has one of the highest enemployment rates of Southern Illinois counties, was up 4 percent, to 19.1 percent. Union County also maintained two-figure unemployment, at 10.9, compared to its 10 percent rate of May.

Massac County went from 9.2 unemployment in May to double digits, 10.8, in June.

Illinois' statewide unemployment figure for June increased to 6.9 percent, up from the 6.6 figure of May, and up 1.9 percent over the 5.3 percent June figures of 1990.

Charles M. Vessell, labor market economist for the Illinois Department of Employment Security at Harrisburg, explained some of the increases in unemployment.

"Unemployment always increases in June, as students and other job seekers enter the job market," he said. "Garment factories in some counties usually close for vacation."