Unemployment numbers comparing Scioto County to the rest of Ohio show a surprising twist for our area. Overall, the jobs news is not great. For April, local unemployment rose to 15%. That’s compared to 7.7% in February.
Now back in February, our local unemployment rate was high when compared to the rest of the state. Ohio’s unemployment rate for 2019 was 4.1%. Thanks to the COVID-19 shutdown, the April figures show an unemployment rate of 16% for the state. Scioto County is actually doing better than most of the state.
Normally, we rank in the top 20 counties in Ohio for unemployment. With these new numbers, we are all the way down to number 65. That means our area has a better employment picture than 74% of the state.
Hit hardest by COVID-19 are:
- Logan County – 30.1%
- Lorrain County – 25.6%
- Erie County – 25.5%
- Crawford County – 24.4%
- Lucas County – 23.7%
Holmes County seems to have gotten the biggest break. Their numbers stand at 6.5%
So why has Scioto County fared so well on the jobs front? I asked County Commissioner Bryan Davis for some insight. He says that while Scioto County has 2,000 outstanding unemployment claims, we seem to have been spared the worst of the COVID-19 fallout.
“Many of our jobs were deemed by professionals as essentials,” he explained. Davis said the area’s largest employer, Southern Ohio Medical Center, was certainly busy in the wake of the pandemic. That’s despite the temporary layoffs of around 400 employees due to COVID-19 restrictions. Those employees are slowly being brought back on board as restrictions on medical procedures ease.
Davis pointed out that SOMC wasn’t the only employer that stayed open for business. “The hospital, SOCF, Pepsi … Most, if not all, of our manufacturers, stayed open. Government, medical, you name it.”
He said that the numbers give our area hope for a faster recovery. “I was looking at these numbers just this morning. It does bode well that we will bounce back faster. With our non-essential people going back to work, that could correct soon.”
Area of Concern
Davis said one area of concern is local restaurants. Many are struggling with the new rules cutting occupancy in half. ” I was talking to a Pizza place owner. They have a game room. That game room is the difference between them making a profit. They’re not able to really open up fully. He’s not able to open up at all.”
Commissioner Cathy Coleman agreed. She said she’d spoken to the manager of a chain restaurant. “They said the restrictions were so challenging for dining in, they just didn’t know when they were going to open.”
According to Davis, there’s also another cause of concern. He says Ohio was showing signs of a slight downturn in the earlier part of the year. Despite that, he says Scioto County was doing well at creating and maintaining jobs. Then along came COVID-19. “This has been like hitting a brick wall.”
There are some bright spots. He says March tax receipts were better than expected. Scioto County actually took in more money than they did last year. But don’t get too comfortable. “When April hits, who knows what’s going to happen there.”