Unemployment rate

Michigan’s unemployment rate increased in August for the third consecutive month. The Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget says the state’s jobless rate last month edged upward by two-tenths of a percentage point to nine percent. Total employment declined by 7,000 over the month, while the number of unemployed rose by 7,000. There was little change in the state’s labor force in August. Michigan’s jobless rate in August was the highest recorded in 2013, but was three-tenths of a percentage point below the state’s August 2012 rate of 9.3 percent. The national jobless rate last month was 7.3 percent.  (MRN)