ALABAMA UNEMPLOYMENT RATE UNCHANGED IN AUGUST

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Alabama’s unemployment rate is holding steady at 4.1 percent.

Figures released by the state on Friday show Alabama’s jobless rate for August is unchanged from the July rate. That’s slightly worse than the rate from a year ago, and it’s also higher than the U.S. rate of 3.9 percent.

State Labor Secretary Fitzgerald Washington says 32,000 more people are working than in August 2017, and total employment remains at a record 2.1 million people. But the jobless rate is unchanged because of the expanding labor pool.

Shelby County in metro Birmingham has the state’s lowest unemployment at 3.1 percent, followed by Cullman County at 3.4 percent and Marshall County at 3.5 percent.

Wilcox County in rural, western Alabama has the highest jobless rate at 10 percent.

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9/21/2018 8:38:05 AM (GMT -5:00)