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SW Michigan Unemployment Rates Drop In May
By: Mike Stiles - Friday, June 26, 2020


(LANSING) – After seeing a big increase in April, unemployment dropped slightly in May around Southwest Michigan.

Officials with the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget say the data released Thursday shows St. Joseph County dropped from 30.3 percent unemployment in April to 19.5 percent in May. That's a decrease of 10.8 percent and the largest in the area.

Cass County saw their unemployment rate drop 8.1 percent, going from 24.9 percent in April to 16.8 percent in May. Hillsdale County went from 27.7 percent to 22.7 percent, which is a 5 percent decrease.

Branch County also saw a decrease in their unemployment rate. They dropped from 19.6 to 19.2 percent from April to May, which is four-tenths of a percent.

Statewide in Michigan, the unemployment rate dropped from 23.6 percent in April to 20.7 percent in May. That's a difference of 2.9 percent.

Jason Palmer, Director of the Bureau of Labor Market Information and Strategic Initiatives says regional jobless rates declined in May, but remained at historically high levels. He said a rebound in jobs occurred in several industries, led by Construction, which increased by 52 percent from April to May.

The biggest drop was in Natural Resources and Mining, which went down by 28.6 percent from April to May.

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