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Not only did localities across the New River Valley see hefty rises in the unemployment rate in June, the state also posted its highest rate in more than four years.
Pulaski County showed the biggest rise in the NRV with an 8.5 percent increase during June compared to 4.7 percent the previous month. In fact, Pulaski County had the fourth highest unemployment rate in Virginia for the month of June. Martinsville led the way with an 11.4 percent rate, followed by Danville, Williamsburg and Pulaski County. There were 1,570 people jobless in Pulaski County compared to 855 in May. The City of Radford jumped from 5.1 percent in May to 6.9 percent in June, while Giles County rose to 5.9 percent compared to 4.2 percent in May. Montgomery County saw its unemployment rate rise from 3.6 percent in May to 4.8 percent in June. State-wide, the unemployment rate rose from 3.8 percent in May to 4.2 percent in June. “As was expected with the close of schools in June, students seeking summer work and new graduates flooded into the summer labor market and boosted the Virginia seasonally unadjusted unemployment rate 0.4 percentage point from May’s 3.8 percent to 4.2 percent for June 2008," according to William Mezger, Chief Economist for the Virginia Employment Commission "This was the highest unemployment rate recorded in Virginia in four years, five months—since January 2004 when unemployment also stood at 4.2 percent. The last time June unemployment was higher was in 2003 when June unemployment was 4.5 percent. The number of jobless workers rose by 18,800 in the 30-day period to 174,900.” The number of Virginia residents drawing unemployment benefits in June 2008 totaled 43,000, up 1,000 from 42,000 in May and up 9,000 from 34,000 in June 2007. New benefit claims averaged 5,000 per week in June, unchanged from May 2008, but 900 higher than the 4,100 per week averaged in June 2007. Cumulative initial claims for unemployment benefits were 21,682 this June, down slightly from 21,716 in May, but up from 17,841 in June 2007. As in previous months, Arlington County led the state with the lowest jobless rate at 2.6 percent and Martinsville had the highest unemployment rate with 11.4 percent.
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