Unemployment decrease

February’s unemployment rate in St. Joseph County ended a two-month trend and decreased compared to the previous month. The monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget showed St. Joseph County’s 7.8 percent February unemployment rate was half a percent less than January’s figure. Furthermore, the February unemployment rate was 1.7 percent less than the same month one year earlier. St. Joseph County remained below the state unemployment average, which was 9.3 percent in February. At 6.3 percent, Barry County had the region’s lowest unemployment rate in February, while Van Buren County had the highest, with 10.5 percent.