LANSING: Unemployment increased to 5 percent in Branch County for August, up from 4.7 percent in July and above the 4.7 percent a year ago. Branch County had record lows of 3.4 percent in April and 3.8 percent in May this year, according to data released from the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget. Statewide, August unemployment rates fell modestly in most regional metro areas and counties. Monthly jobless rate reductions were related in some regions to fewer summer and seasonal job seekers. Since January 2016, the Branch County labor force has grown from around 18,700 up to a June high of 19,639, nearly a thousand more workers looking for jobs.
In August, labor force levels in most regional non-metro counties inched down or were flat, with the exception of St. Joseph County, which added 525. Workforce reductions ranged from 100 in Branch County — now down to 19,102 in August — to 325 in Allegan County, mostly due to fewer job seekers in the market. Since August 2016 , all six non-metro labor markets of southern lower Michigan continued to record labor force reductions, extending from 25 less in Hillsdale to 400 less in Cass County. The number unemployed in Branch County for August for work was recorded at 961, or 40 more people than last year in August. The low for the last 24 months came in April, when the number of unemployed individuals dropped to 659. While the numbers here inch upward, those in nearby Elkhart County, Indiana, have reached 2 percent, essentially with jobs for all seekers, thanks to the booming RV and modular home industry.
