Manufacturing wins help push Ohio jobless rate down

Gains in manufacturing jobs helped push Ohio’s unemployment rate down a tick last month, to 4.7 percent, down from 4.8 percent the month before.

Ohio’s non-agricultural wage and salary jobs increased by 2,500 over the month, from a revised 5,539,700 in November to 5,542,200 in December 2017, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said Friday.

Some of the biggest gains were in goods-producing industries, at 919,500 people employed, growing 1,200 over the month as gains in manufacturing (3,500 new jobs) outweighed losses in construction (1,700 fewer jobs) and mining and logging (-600), the state said.

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The number of workers unemployed in Ohio fell in December to 270,000, down 9,000 from November. The number of unemployed has decreased by 14,000 in the past year from 284,000.

The December unemployment rate for Ohio also fell from 5 percent in December 2016.

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But the state’s jobless rate is still higher than the national number. The U.S. unemployment rate for December was 4.1 percent, unchanged from November, and down from 4.7 percent in December last year.

Ohio’s private service-providing sector, at 3,855,800, gained 600 jobs, the state said.

Employment gains were also seen in leisure and hospitality (2,200 added jobs), financial activities (+1,600), and educational and health services (+800 jobs).

Meanwhile, there were losses in professional and business services (-3,500) and trade, transportation, and utilities (-500).

Information and other services had no change over the month. Government employment, at 766,900, increased 700. Gains in state government (+1,900) outweighed losses in local (-1,100) and federal (-100) government.

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