Unemployment rates down

The April unemployment rate in St. Joseph County decreased by seven-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 3.9 percent April unemployment rate was less than March’s 4.6 percent.
April’s unemployment rate was 2.7 percent less than the same month in 2014, when the figure was 6.6 percent.
St. Joseph County remained below the state unemployment average, which was 4.8 percent in April.
The agency said more people securing employment in the fields of leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, retail trade and construction contributed to the region’s unemployment decrease.
At 3.7 percent, Barry County had the region’s lowest unemployment rate in April, while Van Buren County had the highest, at 5.7 percent.