Area unemployment remains high
Published 12:00 am Sunday, November 11, 2001
Though the figures indicate unemployment in the county remain high, it may dip next spring when the displaced Farmland employees are absorbed in the labor market, according to the forecast by the Minnesota Workforce Center.
Sunday, November 11, 2001
Though the figures indicate unemployment in the county remain high, it may dip next spring when the displaced Farmland employees are absorbed in the labor market, according to the forecast by the Minnesota Workforce Center.
Freeborn County recipients of unemployment benefits numbered 482 in October, rising by 273 people, or 131 percent, from a year ago. Benefits paid have soared by 276 percent: $159,203 to $598,482, or 276 percent.
Of the 17,871 workers that comprise the local labor force, 938, or 5.2 percent, were unemployed in September. The figure jumped by 364, or 63.4 percent, compared to last year. That rate is higher than both the 3.4 percent state average and 4.7 percent national average.
Joseph J. Kurtzman of the Workforce Center Job Service attributes the increase to the Farmland shutdown in July. &uot;The increases correspond to how the Farmland employees have been doing after the fire,&uot; he said.
Due to the fire, the unemployment rate climbed to 5.6 percent in July and the unemployment benefits recipients soared by more than 400.
A gradual decrease in those indicators since the end of the summer suggests that the some displaced workers moved out the city or found new jobs while the majority remains jobless. The decrease also implies that, absent the Farmland factor, the labor market in the county remains intact despite the recent economic downturn.
Currently, the center has about 130 job postings from 90 employers, which is &uot;very comparable to the same period last year,&uot; Kurtzman said.
He foresees lower unemployment next year.
Unemployment benefits for former Farmland workers will dry up by early next year, which will leave them with no choice but come back to the job market. But the decision of the company is crucial for those who prefer to return to the company, Kurtzman said. &uot;Whether Farmland will reopen influences their future career plan,&uot; Kurtzman explained. &uot;But they have to find a job regardless of the Farmland decision, and I think the labor market here has a capacity to absorb them.&uot;
Kurtzman expects labor market indicators to show a recovery in the spring, he said.