Another month, another record: 14.3 percent jobless

Unemployment inched up in July, setting yet another record as the number of jobless hit 195,800 in the Silver State.

That equates to 14.3 percent statewide, driven by a 14.8 percent rate in Las Vegas. There were 5,700 fewer jobs in the Vegas area in July compared with the same month a year ago. Government accounted for 2,000 of the jobs shed.

The Carson City area actually showed slight improvement, falling a tenth to 13.2 percent unemployment as local government added 100 jobs. There are about 3,800 seeking work in the capital.

Douglas and Lyon counties also saw their rates improve. Lyon, which has the state's highest unemployment, dropped a tenth to 18.3 percent, and Douglas fell three-tenths to 14.7 percent.

Storey County rose to 13.3 percent.

The Reno-Sparks reporting area stayed even from June to July at 13.6 percent. But total employment fell 2,600 compared to July 2009 - 2,400 of that in government staffing.

Economist Bill Anderson said the big weakness in the announced unemployment rate is that it only counts the jobless who are actively seeking work. Not included in the numbers are those workers who have given up looking.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Nevada's actual unemployment rate through the second quarter of 2010 is 21.5 percent.

July's numbers mark the 16th consecutive month the rate has risen to a new record but, on the other side of the coin, it's the smallest one-month increase of the year.

The trade, transportation and utilities category added another 800 jobs in July. That sector is up 3,500 jobs this calendar year so far. The mining industry also helped out, adding another 200 jobs to the 900 created statewide since January. Those additions were almost entirely in the Elko/Eureka reporting area, which saw its unemployment rate drop five-tenths to 8 percent compared with June.

The situation was helped by the fact the construction industry, where employment has been in free-fall for nearly three years, lost only 100 jobs in July.

The number of people seeking unemployment benefits, however, has decreased significantly. New claims peaked at 36,414 in December 2008. In July, initial claims totaled just 20,990. Total continuing claims peaked at 393,388 in March 2009 but, as of July, had fallen to 199,875.