Churchill County jobless rate of 7.1% lowest in 2013

Nevada’s unemployment rate fell to 9 percent in November, its lowest rate since November 2008.

That number represents the seasonally adjusted rate. The raw rate was even lower — 8.5 percent statewide. That’s down from October’s 9.3 percent.

Gov. Brian Sandoval said November marks 35 consecutive months of year-over-year job growth with positive numbers in nearly every sector of Nevada’s economy.

“As we end 2013, Nevada expects to have added approximately 50,000 jobs since 2010,” Sandoval said.

However, there still are 123,000 Nevadans looking for work in a labor force of 1.36 million.

“Nevada still has the highest unemployment rate in the nation, and we must do everything we can to create opportunities for job growth,” said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. “With 9 percent unemployment in Nevada, we must remain persistent in our work to extend unemployment insurance benefits for so many Nevadans still hungry for work.”

Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., concurs.

“I am pleased to see Nevada’s unemployment rate at the lowest in five years,” he said. “While we have made significant strides to get Nevadans back to work, there is still much more to be done. Last week, I introduced a bipartisan bill to prevent unemployed workers in the Silver State from losing their unemployment insurance after the holidays. Providing a safety net for those who have fallen on tough times is one of the most important functions of the federal government, and it is my hope Congress works to move our bill forward,”

Churchill County reported its lowest unemployment rate of the year in November. At 7.1 percent, that leaves only some 900 looking for work in a labor force of 12,680. That is 0.4 percent better than in October.

Churchill started the year with a 9.1 percent jobless rate.

In Carson City, the number of people looking for work fell to about 2,400 out of 26,500 in the work force. Key to that decrease was nearly 200 hires by federal and state agencies.

The numbers were better in the Reno and Las Vegas areas, which aren’t nearly as dependent on government jobs. The percentage of unemployed in Reno-Sparks was just 8.2 percent. In Las Vegas, the number was 8.6 percent.

Year over year, unemployment has decreased 0.6 percent in Carson City and 1.2 percent in Las Vegas and the Reno-Sparks metropolitan areas.

Douglas County’s jobless rate dipped 0.6 percent to 9 percent. Of the 20,670 workers there, 1,860 are without work.

Lyon County remains Nevada’s hardest-hit reporting area at 11.5 percent unemployment. But that’s a full 0.7 percent less than in October and nearly 4 percent below the 15.3 percent out of work when Lyon began the calendar year.

According to economist Bill Anderson of the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, historical trends would have predicted a decline of about 700 total jobs from October to November. Instead, he said, Nevada added 8,800 jobs, a seasonally adjusted gain of 9,500 jobs.

The national unemployment rate also fell 0.3 percent from October through November. That number is just 7 percent, significantly lower than in Nevada.

While Nevada’s recovery has lagged behind that of the nation as a whole, the state is closing in on California, which, for November, reported an adjusted rate of 8.7 percent.