Source: Ga. Department of Labor
The jobless rate across the 15-county Northwest Georgia region checked in at 10.6 percent for June, up from 10.3 percent in May and down from 11.2 percent in June of last year.
Most economists, largely because of students entering the labor force, consider increases in the unemployment rate in June normal.
The increase may be the forerunner of a summer of increased numbers for Floyd County with the move of CCH-Small Firm Services hitting the market in July, followed by the shutdown of the Pierre Foods plant, which is expected to impact the August rate.
“People are already working in Kennesaw,” said Heather Seckman, economic development director at the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce, of the CCH move. “I’m sure some of the Pierre employees have already gone someplace else to find work.
“It’s probably going to get worse before it gets better,” Seckman said.
The current expansions at Syntec and Southeastern Mills and the new jobs that will be added when FP-Pigments arrives from Finland in several months are just not enough to make up for the large losses at CCH and Pierre. Each of those firms employed more than 300 people.
“We are working with several strong prospects that I’m very hopeful for,” Seckman added.
Department of Labor statistics indicate almost 5,300 Floyd County citizens were out of work in June, an increase of 200 from May’s figures.
Actually, the issue is one of economic diversification, JPT, and that's not a Mexican problem, that's a local government/chamber of commerce problem. If Rome's economy were not so lopsidedly construction-centered -- the worst industry to be invested in during this ongoing housing depression -- the unemployment pain would be mitigated greatly. And as a bonus, your perverse preoccupation with illegal immigrants would be put into its proper, diminished perspective.
One would tend to think that with all the new construction projects around town, that the unemployment rate would actually be down.
But there has not been one single want ad posted for any of these jobs. Hmmm???
And when you ride by these construction jobsites, there are Mexicans working everywhere. Hmmm?