Flood year? Still too early to tell
January 31, 2012Alice Pinell Usie
February 2, 2012Year-end comparative figures posted a drop in unemployment for the Tri-parish region, following in line with the state of Louisiana and national numbers.
The Louisiana Workforce Commission has listed the Houma-Thibodaux Metropolitan Statistical Area as having seen a drop in unemployment from 5 percent in December 2010 to 4.3 percent in December 2011.
That represents a decline in unemployment from 4.8 percent in December 2010 to 4.2 percent one year later for Lafourche Parish.
Terrebonne Parish unemployment levels declined from 5.2 percent to 4.3 percent during the same time period.
In Morgan City, unemployment figures listed a level of 7.8 percent at the end of 2011, which was down from the 9.1 percent listed one year earlier.
Louisiana unemployment levels were listed at 7.2 percent at the end of December 2010, and declined to 6.4 percent by the close of 2011. Nationally, unemployment was at 9.1 percent in December 2010 and 8.3 percent in December 2011.
While Lafourche Parish posted the lowest unemployment at the end of 2011, the Louisiana region with the highest unemployment level was East Carrol Parish at 15.2 percent in December 2011, which was down from 16.1 percent from one year earlier.
Louisiana areas that experienced an increase in unemployment during the one-year span included both Iberville and DeSoto parishes, which each posted a slight unemployment increase from 7.4 percent in December 2010 to 7.5 percent in December 2011.
Unemployment in Grant Parish held even with both December 2010 and December 2011 listings at 6.9 percent.
“2011 was marked by very consistent and solid job growth,” LWC Executive Director Curt Eysink said in a printed statement. “Those numbers indicate that employers find Louisiana to be a great place to grow and do business.”
Unemployment figures are based on first time filings for benefits, they do not represent out of work citizens that have never filed, gave up on looking for work, or are considered self-employed.
At the same time, according to Eysink, the retail trades grew by 3,000 jobs in Louisiana during 2011, and the health care and social assistance industries added 17,600 jobs in the state during the same 12-month period.
A state survey of employers showed that Metropolitan Statistical Areas that had non-farm employment gains during 2011 included New Orleans with 6,000; Lafayette with 5,800; Houma 3,100; Lake Charles 2,200; Alexandria 1,400 and Baton Rouge with 1,100 additional workers.
