UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IMPROVES

There's a new product at some Hardee's restaurants this week fried chicken.

Hardee's officials unveiled plans for the fried chicken menu during a gathering of federal, state and local officials at Paducah, Ky., last week.

"The product will create a significant number of new jobs," said a Hardee's spokesman. "The overall economic impact in the Paducah-Cape Girardeau area is projected at almost $3 million."

The company-owned Hardee's at 421 Highway 61 East in Jackson started serving fried chicken Tuesday. Another company-owned store at 2115 William in Cape Girardeau is expected to introduce its chicken within two weeks.

Hardee's officials said the new product will result in 15 to 20 percent more jobs at each restaurant.

The increased employment at Hardee's and a number of other retail businesses, along with increases in construction activity, have resulted in improvements to unemployment figures in Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois.

Missouri unemployment dipped under the 6 percent mark, to 5.6, in March, and Cape Girardeau County dropped below 4 percent, to 3.8, ranking it among the top five counties in Missouri with the lowest unemployment.

The Columbia Metropolitan area had the lowest unemployment figure in Missouri, at 2.8 percent, a drop of a half-percent from February figures.

The Cole-Osage area recorded a 3.4 percent unemployment rate, and Barton County was at 3.7 percent. Next were Cape Girardeau and Perry counties, each at 3.8 percent.

"In February we had 1,586 people without jobs," said Jackie Cecil, local office manager at the Missouri Division of Employment Security office in Cape Girardeau. "This month that figure has dropped to 1,429."

A total of 35,955 people have jobs in Cape County.

"We're fortunate here," said Cecil. "This is a diversified area, which consistently provides employment for more than 95 percent of its work force."

More than 9,900 of Perry County's work force of 10,343 people have jobs.

"Only 398 people are without jobs in Perry County," said Cecil. "With a total of 9,945 people working, that computes to 96.2 percent employment."

Cape Girardeau, Perry and Bollinger counties all fall under the Cape Girardeau employment office.

"Bollinger County unemployment also dropped in March, from 9.3 percent to 8.6," said Cecil.

A total of 4,224 people have jobs in Bollinger County, leaving 399 without jobs. "A month ago there were 474 people without jobs there," said Cecil.

Any loss of jobs in Perry and Bollinger counties can result in a big shuffling of numbers. Bollinger County's work force is 4,584, while Perry County's work force is 10,215.

Missouri's unemployment rate improved in March. The statewide unemployment rate dipped to 5.6 percent, representing a decline from the 6 percent of February and down 1.1 percent from the unemployment rate in March 1991.

"Although it is normal for the unemployment rate to start a downward trend in March, it is abnormal for the rate to be more than a full percentage from a year ago," said Donna M. White, director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. "This is a good indication that economic conditions are improving."

White said both unemployment and employment estimates present a positive picture for the month.

Estimated total unemployment for March was 153,000, down 11,000 from February and 27,600 under the figure for of a year ago. Estimated total employment in March increased to 2,572,600.

"The latter figure reflects an increase of 10,500 from the previous month," said White. "And 61,500 more Missourians are working in March of 1992 than in March of 1991."

Unemployment numbers were down in every Southern Illinois county.

"Unemployment rates dropped slightly 2 percent or less across the southern part of the state," said Charles M. Vessell, labor market economist for the Illinois Department of Employment Security at Harrisburg. "This marks the second month in a row that the rates have dropped in most counties."

Vessell said a winter "devoid of any long periods of severe weather" that permitted intermittent periods of work on various construction projects, manufacturing recalls, and expansions in retail trade all helped the drop in joblessness.

Pulaski, which was the only immediate Southern Illinois county to show an unemployment increase for February, dropped almost 1 percent in March, from 16 percent to 15.1. Union County experienced a 2.3 percent drop and Alexander County dropped from 15.4 to 13.3 percent for a 2.1 percent drop.

Hamilton County is still the highest unemployment county in the area, at 22 percent. That is a 2 percent drop from February.

Statewide, Illinois recorded 8.2 percent unemployment, down from the 8.9 percent figure in January,

"We had some mass layoffs in January and February in Illinois," said Illinois Department of Employment Security Director Loleta Didrickson. "At one point in January our unemployment figure was near 10 percent."

The national unemployment rate for February was 7.7 percent, down from the 8.1 percent figure of February.