Employment continues Record Climb in SC

South Carolina’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 4.2% in April, down from 4.4% in March as the number of employed reached a new all time high, reports the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. The number of individuals working across the state inched upward in April by 318 people to a record level of 2,225,570. Unemployment decreased in April by 4,157 to a level of 97,922, resulting in the state’s labor force declining by 3,839 to 2,323,492. “South Carolina’s businesses are hiring and have put a record number of people to work across the state, and that is reason to celebrate. But we have more work to do to prepare those unemployed for today’s workforce,” said Cheryl Stanton, executive director of the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. “A recent Pew Research Center study showed that roughly 1-in-10 people don’t have functional knowledge of how to use a computer and that is keeping them behind. The State Workforce Development Board recently awarded $225,000 for the development of programs to improve the computer literacy skills for those in need so they too can participate in today’s robust and changing workplace.” Since April of 2017, the seasonally adjusted labor force has grown by 15,916 people, and employment gains totaled 16,266. The level of unemployed declined by approximately 350 people. Locally, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce lists Anderson County’s unemployment rate at 2.6% in April compared to 3.8% in March. Oconee County’s jobless figure was 2.7% in April and 4% in March. Pickens County posted 2.6% unemployment in April compared to 3.9% in March. Nationally, the unemployment rate edged down to 3.9% from March’s rate of 4.1%. Similar to the state, driving the national rate lower was a decline in the labor force as fewer people looked for work.