PANAMA CITY — After a rise in Bay County’s jobless rate following the end of the summer tourism season, rates showed a decrease in September, according to figures the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity released Friday.
The county’s unemployment rate fell from 6.1 percent in August to 5.7 percent last month. Year-over-year, the unemployment rate showed just a 0.1 percent decline.
“It’s certainly a positive note to see these numbers moving downward,” said Kim Bodine, executive director of CareerSource Gulf Coast. “We are hopeful that those who are being displaced as the tourist season winds down are finding new employment opportunities.”
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CareerSource Gulf Coast is the official state agency providing services to job seekers and employers in Bay, Gulf and Franklin counties, each of which posted a decrease in unemployment.
The state unemployment rate also fell from 6.3 to 6.1 percent between August and September, and from 6.9 percent a year ago, marking the lowest rate since June 2008.
While the unemployment rate did decline locally last month, the unemployment rate does not consider “discouraged job seekers,” or those who have stopped looking for work.
The change in seasons can be seen through examination of Bay County’s labor force, a combination of the number of employed residents and those actively seeking work.
The labor force declined by about 2,500 last month, falling from 93,699 in August to 91,226 in September. Between July and August, the labor force fell by about 1,000. The number of employed residents in Bay County also saw a decline last month, from 87,996 to 86,009.
Friday’s DEO report also included an outline of industries gaining and losing the most jobs in the Bay County area in the last year.
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Industries gaining the most jobs included: trade, transportation and utilities; professional and business services; and government. Industries losing the most jobs included: leisure and hospitality; mining, logging and construction; education and health and other services; and financial activities.
Bodine continued to dispute job loss numbers in the leisure and hospitality industry, citing drastic increases in the number of visitors to the area year-over-year.
“I don’t know how we are losing jobs in that industry when the local economic indicators are telling us quite the opposite,” Bodine said. “The Bay County Tourist Development Council just met this week and cited a 23 percent increase in August visits year over year. In fact, there’s been a three-month string of record-breaking tourist activity.”