Arkansas’ October jobless rate jumps to 7.6%

Arkansas’ seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose from 7.1% in September to 7.6% in October, an increase that could end three consecutive months of rate declines in the Fort Smith metro area.

Jobless data for Arkansas’ metro areas is set for a Dec. 2 release.

Arkansas’ civilian labor force gained 2,900 in October, with 7,000 more unemployed and 4,100 fewer employed Arkansans, according to the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services. While the number of unemployed reached 103,900 this month, it is still below Arkansas’ high of 105,300 unemployed in February 1983.

The state’s October jobless rate of 7.6% is also more than 2 percentage points higher than the October 2008 rate of 5.4%.

“The increase in Arkansas’ unemployment rate mirrors the change seen on the national level. The recession is still having affects here in Arkansas, as we continue to see layoffs and closures around the state. The last time Arkansas’ unemployment rate reached 7.6 percent was in September 1988,” DWS Communications Director Kimberly Friedman said in a statement.

The U.S. jobless rate was 10.2% in October, up over the 9.8% in September and significantly higher than the 6.6% in October 2008.

Jeff Collins, an economist with Springdale-based Streetsmart Data and economist for The City Wire’s The Compass report, said he is not surprised by the uptick and believes the more than half-point percentage gain will likely result in higher jobless rates in many of Arkansas’ metro areas.

“Do I think this means you might see a higher (unemployment) rate for Fort Smith? Sure. I think, unfortunately, that’s a reasonable assumption,” Collins said.

The Fort Smith metro unemployment rate during September fell to 7%, marking three consecutive months of decline from a 2009 high of 7.8% in June.

ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT CHANGES (Oct. 2009 – Oct. 2008)
• The number of unemployed in Arkansas was 103,907 in October 2009, up 40.3% over the 74,051 unemployed in October 2008.

• Since October 2008, Arkansas manufacturing employment has fallen 10.2% to 162,700 in October 2009. The Arkansas DWS estimates that more than 75% of the loss occurred in durable goods, which is the primary component of manufacturing in the Fort Smith region.

• Employment in the government sector was 221,000 in October, up over the 215,800 in October 2008.

• The education and health services sector posted 169,200 jobs in October, up 6.1% over the 159,400 in October 2008. Health care and social assistance posted about 80% of the gain, according to DWS.

• Trade, transportation and utilities jobs numbered 230,500 in October, down 5.7% from October 2008.