WFHB Bloomington Community Radio
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Owen, Greene, and Monroe Counties are among the highest unemployment rates in the state.
The May Indiana Unemployment Report was released by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, shows that overall, Indiana’s unemployment rate is relatively low at 3.2 percent, compared to the national average of 3.8 percent, but 40 of the state’s 92 counties have a higher unemployment rate than the state average. Of the 40 county rates that sit above the state rate, 9 counties have a higher unemployment rate than the national average.
Owen and Greene counties both fall into that category at a shared unemployment rate of four percent. They tie for fifth in the state for unemployment.
Only around 9,000 Owen County residents fit the criteria to be considered part of the labor force – individuals must have actively sought work in the past four weeks or been temporarily laid off from their last job – approximately 400 of those individuals fall into the unemployed category.
Greene County is in a similar situation. Greene County only has a slightly larger labor force than Owen County. Just over 13,000 Greene County residents meet the criteria to be considered part of the labor force, and more than 600 of these individuals are unemployed. This puts Greene County at fifth in the state along with Owen County.
While Monroe County does not rank quite as high as Greene and Owen Counties, it does boast a higher unemployment rate than the state average. Monroe County comes in at 12th in the state for unemployment with a rate of 3.7 percent, which is higher than the statewide 3.2 percent. Monroe County’s unemployment rate falls just below the national average of 3.8.
This number has even gone down in recent years, falling from 4.4 percent in August 2017. The same goes for Owen and Greene Counties.
This trend, at least in Monroe County, correlates to the fluctuating population in Bloomington throughout the year.
Bloomington Department of Economic & Sustainable Development Director Alex Crowley, said unemployment rates in Monroe County often spike during the summer. When IU students leave there is less of a need for certain services throughout the city, leading to employees being laid off in May. Crowley said Monroe County’s rate will likely go back down when students return to town in August.
