New numbers from the N.C. Employment Security Commission show a continued increase in unemployment rates for Asheville, Buncombe County and North Carolina.
According to a March 11 report, the state unemployment rate rose another percentage point, from 8.7 percent in December 2008 to 9.7 percent in January 2009. That means the the most unemployed statewide since 1983.
And numbers released on March 19 show an even greater increase in Asheville’s unemployment rate, from 6.7 percent in December to 8.7 in January. Buncombe County experienced an increase from 6.3 to 8.2 percent during that same period.
According ot the ESC, the municipal and county figures — unlike the state rate — are not adjusted for normal seasonal fluctuations in employment.
— Brian Postelle, staff writer
