Area labor market remains stable

Labor market conditions remained stable throughout most of Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois in September.

That could change soon.

Many areas have reported layoffs in a variety of jobs, ranging from a few to a lot.

The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 damaged a U.S. economy already showing some signs of weakness, and the average number of newly laid-off workers over the past month hit a 10-year high nationally.

These statistics are not showing up in September numbers, and October figures won't be available for another two weeks.

Missouri unemployment dropped 0.2 of a point to 4 percent in September, reported the Missouri Department of Economic Development, which keep tabs on these numbers.

September statistics are based on data collected the week of Sept. 12, said Joseph L. Driskill, the DED director. The employment picture also stabilized somewhat in September, after having been on the decline since the beginning of the year.

Retail trade employment in the state was up by 2,700 jobs in September, which included a gain of 900 in restaurants and bars. Wholesale trade was also up, by 1,800 jobs, but this didn't quite make up the loss in August. Business services was another industry to bounce back, by 2,200 jobs, following the battering it had taken the past year. Health services was up by 1,500 jobs and social services by 900, but employment in transportation and public utilities were down by 1,800 jobs in September. Airlines and related industries were relatively flat in the pre-Sept. 11 period.

Local figures

In the immediate area, Cape Girardeau's unemployment figure dropped by a percentage point, from 3.8 to 3.7 percent. Fewer jobs were reported, 35,715 in August, to 34,936. But, at the same time, the Cape County workforce decreased by about 800.

That's not unusual. The Cape Girardeau County workforce fluctuates 800 to 1,000 a month.

Ditto for Perry County, but on a smaller scale. The Perry County workforce bounces consistently between 10,800 to 11,200 from month to month. The Perry unemployment rate was 2.8 percent in September, up 0.2 from August, when it was recorded at 2.6 percent. The unemployment rate was down in about two-thirds of the Southeast Missouri counties in September.

Jobless rates in September were higher than last year's levels for most Illinois metro areas, according to monthly statistics released by the Illinois Department of Employment Security, but the economy of deep Southern Illinois improved over the past couple of months.

All 22 counties included in the Southern Illinois report for September showed unemployment rates drop, said Charles M. Vessell, labor market economist for the Illinois employment agency.

"Employment remained strong throughout the area," said Vessell. "The annual back-to-school movement, a strong construction sector and the start of the fall harvest added to employment rolls.

With a 7.2 unemployment rate, Alexander County has about 300 unemployed of its 4,161 available workers. Williamson and Jackson counties, which include Marion, Carbondale and Murphysboro, range in unemployment from 3.1 percent to 4.5 percent, but with a workforce of more than 45,000 in the two counties, as many as 4,000 workers are unemployed.

Meanwhile, Union County dropped 4 percentage points, to a 4.3 unemployment rate, and Pulaski County showed a drop from 10.8 to 8.3 percent unemployment. Massac County, with some increased jobs at Harrah's Casino, dropped to 4.2 percent unemployment.

rowen@semissourian.com

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