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Local rate remains at 8.9 percent for third straight month as several hundred jobs added in July.
The unemployment rate remained at 8.9 percent for the third straight month in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area as a couple hundred jobs were added to payrolls in July.
Non-farm jobs rose by 200 to 253,900 for the month when seasonally adjusted to take into account typical hiring trends. It was the first month-over-month increase since January, according to data released today by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
In the month-to-month comparison Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate rose one-tenth of a percentage point to 8.5 percent and the nation’s rate dropped to 9.4 percent.
The economic crisis has weighed heavily on area employers and employees, resulting in the loss of 8,600 jobs since July 2008. At that time the unemployment rate was 6.1 percent in the area made up of Lackawanna, Luzerne and Wyoming counties.
Within the area, Luzerne County had the highest unemployment rate of 9.5 percent when measuring the resident labor force or people who live in the area but might work anywhere. The county also had 161,000 workers, more than Lackawanna and Wyoming counties combined. Wyoming County followed with an unemployment rate of 8.7 percent. Lackawanna County’s rate was 8.2 percent.
When the rates were averaged the area ranked ninth among the state’s 14 labor markets. State College had the lowest unemployment rate of 5.8 percent and at the opposite end was Erie with 9.7 percent.
The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre labor market recorded few gains in the various job categories listed by the department.
The goods-producing sector that includes manufacturing reported 39,700 jobs, the same number as in June, but down 4,300 from July 2008.
The service-providing sector lost 2,500 jobs for the month and dropped to 213,200. Much of the loss came from the closing of schools for the summer break. Since July 2008 the sector lost 4,000 jobs.
Peter Phelan, a department industry and business analyst, said the summer hirings and layoffs are factored in to arrive at the seasonally adjusted job total, which is a “better indicator” of employment in an area.
For July, the service-providing sector alone lost 2,200 jobs including public and private school teachers, bus drivers and educational services. The department looks at historical seasonal patterns and takes out the seasonal variables to arrive at its monthly jobs total, he said.