David Trinko/The Lima News
LIMA — Unemployment rates for the area ran from the lowest rate in Mercer County of 2.7% to the highest rate of 5.0% in Hardin County. Allen, Putnam, and Hancock counties remained the same. Van Wert, Mercer, Auglaize and Logan counties moved the percentage downward while Hardin County was the only one in the area to increase.
A closer look at the Allen County numbers reveals that the workforce increased by 300 and the number of workers increased by a similar amount leaving the same 2,000 unemployed from the June figures.
Unemployment rates were lower in July in 14 states and higher in 3 states, and stable in 33 states, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. All 50 states had jobless rate decreases from a year earlier. The unemployment rate for July 2022 decreased slightly from prior months and settled at 3.5%. This is equal to the pre-pandemic level of 3.5% in February 2022. Minnesota had the lowest jobless rate in July, 1.8 percent. The highest rates were in Alaska and New Mexico, 4.5 percent each.
Low unemployment is not considered healthy, as lower rates can be seen as inflationary due to pricing pressure on salaries. However, high unemployment is not considered healthy, as higher rates can be seen as a financial strain on consumer spending. In general, most experts believe unemployment between 3% and 5% to be ideal, though there is no single consensus on what constitutes healthy unemployment.
