COLUMBUS, Ind. — Unemployment in Bartholomew County remained largely unchanged in January as state and national jobless rates fell, the Indiana Department of Workforce Development announced Tuesday.
In January, Bartholomew County’s unemployment rate was 3.7%, up slightly from 3.6% in December and higher than in January 2020, when unemployment stood at 2.7%, state records show.
By comparison, U.S. unemployment was 6.3% in January, down from 6.7% the month before, and Indiana’s jobless rate fell to 4.2% in January, down from 4.6% in December.
However, unemployment is considerably lower than in April, when Bartholomew County’s jobless rate was 17.2% and Indiana’s rate was 17.5%.
Additionally, Bartholomew County workers are still filing for jobless benefits at higher rates than before the pandemic, according to state records.
An average of 29 workers in Bartholomew County filed initial unemployment claims from 2015 to 2019, and the total number of workers drawing unemployment benefits never exceeded 398 during any week over the same time period.
A total of 116 Bartholomew County workers filed initial unemployment claims the week ending March 6, down from 137 the week before, according to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.
Overall, 514 workers in Bartholomew County were drawing unemployment benefits the week ending Feb. 27, the most recent on record, which was down from 551 the week before.
For more on this story, see Wednesday’s Republic.
