Recordpub.com - Unemployment rate in Portage jumps to 12%

By Mike Sever

Record-Courier staff writer

The jobless rate for Portage County jumped 1.3 percentage points to 12 percent in January from December’s 10.7 percent rate, according to state numbers released Wednesday.

A year ago, in January 2009, the county’s rate was 9.6 percent. The data indicates 10,700 county residents were jobless out of a labor force of 89,500.

Portage ranked 60th out of the 88 counties, according to statistics released by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

The state’s rate of 10.8 percent was unchanged from December. Both the county and the state rates were higher than the U.S. rate of 9.7 percent, which was down from 10 percent in December.

Ohio’s nonfarm wage and salary employment dropped by 12,800 over the month, from 4,998,400 in December to 4,985,600 in January.

Kent’s rate was 8.2 percent, up from 7.2 percent in December, with 1,300 people unemployed out of a labor force of 16,400.

Three of Portage’s six abutting counties had higher rates than Portage. Trumbull was highest at 14.3 percent followed by Mahoning at 13.7 and Stark at 13.5.

Summit’s rate was 11.7 while Cuyahoga’s was 10.2 and Geauga’s was 9.7 percent.

Mary Boston of Portage’s Workforce Connection said the actual number of unemployed is higher since the 12 percent “does not reflect those who have given up and exhausted benefits.” Boston said the uptick in January numbers could have been influenced by the severe weather.

While Boston would not hazard a guess to the real percentage, she said the center has “definitely seen an increase in customer traffic, those looking for work, needing resumes, upgrading job skills and looking for training opportunities.”

Training funds are available and the one-stop center holds sessions every Monday morning at Maplewood Career Center in Ravenna for people needing information on how to apply for funding for training. Registration is through the one-stop, 1081 W. Main St., Ravenna.

Among Ohio’s 88 counties, the January unemployment rates ranged from a low of 8.4 percent in Delaware County to a high of 19.8 percent in Ottawa County. Rates increased in all but one county.

Nine counties had jobless rates of less than 10 percent. In addition to Delaware, they were Holmes (8.6), Mercer (9.3), Franklin (9.4) Athens (9.5), Lawrence (9.6), Geauga (9.7), and Medina and Union (9.8).

Seven counties including Ottawa had rates at or above 18 percent. The others were Clinton (19.3), Highland (19.1), Noble (18.6), Morgan (18.5), Huron (18.3) and Pike (18.0).

Multi-media graphic: The Geography of a Recess: http://cohort11.americanobserver.net/latoyaegwuekwe/multimediafinal.html

14.	Posted by Sally March 11, 2010
	BUY AMERICAN! WIPE OUT POVERTY ONE SALE AT A TIME! Anyway, my solution is pretty simple really. People need to buy American. And, the American people need to quit letting unions think for them. You don't deserve $30 dollars an hour to flick a switch. We've gotten too big for our britches. Literally! Why do we continue to buy so much from China when so many of their products are tainted and poisonous? Is China buying that much from us that we depend on them? I admit, it is really hard to buy American. I go to the pet store for treats and 8 out of 10 items are made in China. I won't buy them. Do I really want to poison my pets? After all, their factories put poison in infant formula! I bought a sweater from Kohl's a couple weeks ago. It was Sag Harbor. Sounded rich! Well I washed it and the whole bottom hem turned up. The darn thing is defective. Guess what? Checked the label..... yeah,,,, made in China. No more Sag Harbor clothes. I will still shop at Kohl's I'll jsut check labels more carefully. Not to pick on China but it seems that the majority of imported products come from there. I have nothing against China, really! I just want to save my country. Me and my alter ego ( she thinks she is a superhero)feel pretty confident if we can get enough people on board we can create a demand for American made products which should help create jobs for our people! C'mon folks! Don't make me take this show on the road all by meself!!!! We gotta help ourselves! BUY AMERICAN - SUPPORT YOURSELVES!

13.	Posted by DoWhatsRight March 11, 2010
	Come on people forget the dam political party crap. The problem is taxes and pending taxes. Arguing Party Politics got us into this mess. To start take the dam storm water tax in Portage County. It is figured on a certain square footage as a unit. Then when a business comes in to Portage They are charged per unit. This adds up to Tens of thousand of dollars for a Walmart Store. Just think what it is for a manufacturing plant. Next, look at the property tax. The money used to pay the property tax could be used to increase the number of workers. However, look at the payroll tax. A number of places taxes you were you work and were you live. Yes, I know some give you credit for part of the amount you pay at one place or the other. The problem is the taxes levied on you at your place of employment are out of your hands. You can not vote on how much the tax is nor how it is to be used, and the cities stick it to the workers because they can not vote them out. The state of Ohio comes along every 2 years and says you property had increased in value and you have to pay even more tax, so the politicians can spend it on their little jaunts and sending their kids to college like our Commissioner and his cronies did. Next look at the proposed Health Care. There are so many taxes in that bill that if it passed our unemployment will exceed 15% if not more. (My Opinion). This Health Care bill puts a tax on every piece of medical equipment made. There are already taxes on each hospital, nursing home or clinic beds. How in the hell can you reduce the cost of health care when you increase the tax on every part of it. There should be NO tax on any medical equipment or service. This bill also taxes every business with a payroll of $250,000. This is not a big payroll, but you can bet the business will cut the employees to below the $250,000. This bill also includes a section that makes the business supply health care for part time employees if you employ 50 or more people. Guest what? How many companies will keep 50 employees? Those that have to have that many will pack up and go to Mexico. Tom Sawyer cast the deciding vote on NAFTA. Now he is back in and will vote for this bill that will send even more of our factories to Mexico. Even if the company survives and continues, these increase in the taxes will have to be passed on to the consumer in a price increase. That means less people will be able to afford the product. Less demand means less production and less production means less workers. Layoff again. How many public buildings are full of public employees in Portage County? How many employees are on the payroll? Do we really need that many. Cut back and cut back the taxes so business can make a profit and stay in this country.

6.	Posted by whydoicare March 11, 2010
	You can try to pin this on Obama, but it goes back to Clinton with the passage of NAFTA and GAFT. There are no jobs, because we do not produce anything in this country anymore.We have artificial bubbles, that give the illusion of growth and then they pop and everyone scrambles to blame a particular political party. They are all to blame. Bush made things worse by giving tax cuts AND starting two wars. Bush's expansion of entitlement programs (Medicare Drug Plans) was irresponsible and drove us deeper in debt. Now the Feds want to make sure all their fat cat banker friends get paid as the American ship sinks. Republicans and Democrats alike have led to our ruination as the American people run to Wal-Mart to drown in a sea of Chinese made sh*t! Wake up America!