County's jobless rate one of lowest
3.2 percent here compares to 4 percent for state
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Madison County's unemployment rate in July was among the lowest in the state, at 3.2 percent, down sharply from a year ago, according to state figures.
The county's unemployment rate fell 1.6 percent from the previous July, and the rate is .5 percent better than in June, according to the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations.
The state's overall unemployment rate is also down sharply from a year ago, dropping to 4 percent for July.
The state's unemployment rate fell 1.5 percent from the previous July's figures and was down .4 percent from June's rate.
The Madison County metropolitan area, which includes Limestone County, saw 3,200 more nonfarm jobs filled in July 2005 than a year earlier. The biggest gains were in professional and business service jobs, which saw an increase of 1,800 over the previous year, and education and health services, which grew by 800 jobs, according to state figures.
Bullock County, in southeast Alabama, reported the state's highest unemployment rate at 10 percent. Shelby County, which neighbors Birmingham, had the state's lowest jobless rate, 2.9 percent.
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