Unemployment Edges Up

employment-application

From the Associated Press — Michigan’s unemployment rate edged upward to 4.8% in February. Figures released Wednesday by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget show Michigan’s jobless rate last month rose from 4.7% in January. It was seven-tenths of a percentage point above the national rate of 4.1 percent in February and unchanged from the state’s February 2017 rate of 4.8 percent. The agency says total employment was essentially unchanged over the month while the number of unemployed increased by 1,000.The February jobless rate increase was Michigan’s first since a minor uptick recorded in September. Bureau of Labor Market Information and Strategic Initiatives Director Jason Palmer says the number of jobs statewide increasing by 16,000 over the first two
months of the year.