Unemployment up over previous month

The July unemployment rate in St. Joseph County rose by eight-tenths of a percent compared to a month earlier.
The monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget showed St. Joseph County’s 4.7 percent July unemployment rate was higher than June’s 3.9 percent.
July’s unemployment rate, however, was 1.2 percent less than the same month a year earlier, when the figure was 5.9 percent.
St. Joseph County remained below the state unemployment average, which was 5.4 percent in July.
The agency said temporary summer layoffs of support staff in education that started in late June contributed to the increased unemployment figure.
At 3.9 percent, Allegan County had the region’s lowest unemployment rate in July, while Hillsdale County had the highest, at 5.8 percent.