Marion County's unemployment is at all-time high

Marion County's 19 percent unemployment is the highest since 1990, according to Sam McClary, a labor market analyst with the state's employment commission.

Because methodologies have changed, McClary said statistics before 1990 are not comparable to today's unemployment stats. McClary, who has been a data analyst with the state for 38 years said he believes there was high unemployment in the Pee Dee County in the late 1970s, but that by December 1997, unemployment was a record low of 5.4 percent in Marion. Unemployment basically started climbing in the county since 1998, he added.

On Tuesday, unemployment statistics for the state were released. In the Pee Dee and Grand Strand, unemployment rates ranged from Marion County's 19 percent, up from 16.9 percent in November, to a low of 9.1 percent in Florence County, a figure up from 8 percent in November. All counties in the scnow.com coverage area, with the exception of Florence County, were above the state average.

According to Cindy Rogers, the area director in Marion for the Employment Security Commission, which also services Dillon County residents and employers, from July-December 2008, 600 people found jobs through the local service.

The office, she said, is averaging about 3,300 people a month seeking services.

"We have staff available to help ..." she explained, whether it's using the office's software programs to enhance skills, help with writing resumes or checking to see what employers are hiring, staff is available to help the unemployed.

"You don't even have to be out of work to use our services," she said. Online, check for jobs at the commission's Web site, www.sces.org. In Marion, the ESC office is at 2413 East U.S. Highway 76. Other area offices are in Bennettsville, on Highway 9; in Hartsville, at 1319 South Fourth Street; in Conway, at 200-A Victory Lane; in Florence, at 1558 W. Evans Street; and in Kingstree, at 530 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave.

For employers, Rogers, said, the office handles the posting of jobs for employers and initial screenings for them. Resources offered in the office are web and computer based, she said, explaining that software helps folks write resumes, practice data entry skills, offers tutorials to help pick up computer speeds, among other things. If a person doesn't have a diploma from high school, she said, there is software to help folks work on their basic math and reading skills.

All the resources are free to the those using them, as they are a "prepaid service" funded through employers and the state. This past month, about 80 people found jobs, of various types, through the office's services, she said. From July 1 to December, she said, that number was at 600.

"We also offer workshops, weekly, for people seeking reemployment assistance," Rogers said. The one-hour workshops offer a review of interviewing skills, she added. "The more people you have helping you look for a job, the better chance you have to find something," she said. Individuals looking for work need to "get out there visit other Web sites, and don't forget to visit businesses in person." Rogers said that contact with employers is most important to finding a job.

As to job availability, Rogers said she encourages anyone who is unemployed to come in and register at the ESC, as it is a State Labor Exchange Agency. "We have job listings at South Carolina Job Link which can be accessed by Internet or in any of our Local Workforce Centers. Job seekers can look at the openings by occupation, county, etc.," she said.

For more labor market statistics, visit www.sces.org . Rogers can be called at (843 ) 423-6900.

South Carolina's 9.5 percent unemployment rate is the third-highest in the nation and the state's highest in more than 25 years, officials said Tuesday. An additional 25,600 South Carolinians joined the jobless ranks last month, raising the total number of unemployed in the state to a record 207,171. The national rate in December was 7.2 percent. Only Michigan, at 10.6 percent, and Rhode Island, at 10 percent, were worse off. South Carolina's increase over November's rate tied with Indiana for the largest month-to-month jump.