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Jobless rate drops, Kentucky's problems continue

Although Kentucky's unemployment rate fell from 11.2 percent in August to 10.9 percent in September, the reason for the drop is problematic, according to www.kentucky.com.

People who have been unemployed for a long time are "becoming discouraged and dropping out of the labor force," says Justine Detzel, chief labor market analyst for the Office of Employment and Training.

Additionally, although the monthly unemployment rate decreased, the jobless rate is up 4 percent from the September 2008 rate of 6.9 percent.

"Kentucky's economy continued to struggle under the weight of the recession, suffering the biggest monthly employment decline and largest number of year-over-year losses on records dating back to January 1990," Detzel says.

Kentucky lost 14,600 jobs in September. The construction sector was the state's only sector to experience growth that month, adding 400 positions. Detzel says this reflects the start of multiple commercial and public works construction projects.

The state's government sector experienced the biggest job drop, falling by 6,400 positions.

11/10/2009