December unemployment rate in South Carolina hit new recorded records. That rate rose to 12.6 percent.
The state’s Employment Security Commission said that the biggest job loss last month came in leisure and hospitality businesses which lost more than 5,000 jobs.
All those job losses in that industry didn't bode well for tourism dependent areas like the Grand Strand.
Stephen Greene with the Myrtle Beach Area Hospitality Association said that more and more people are hunting for work in the Grand Strand's tourism and hospitality industry because that's what this area thrives on.
But the problem he said is that a lot of the local businesses have either recently closed down or just don't have enough jobs to offer to those without a job.
Katie Fisher who went to the Coastal Workforce Center in Conway for the first time Friday said that looking for a job hasn’t been easy and collecting unemployment is her only option to get by.
"Oh I've had so many nights where I have cried my self to sleep because I don't know what tomorrow is going to bring," said Fisher, who had to stop going to college because she says she doesn’t have the money to complete her education.
Fisher said that once she finds a job then she’d like to save up and go back to school to earn a degree in massage therapy.
“Since this is a tourist place, everybody loves to get pampered every once in a while,” Fisher explained.
"Knowing that I don't have a job and that I'm struggling so bad that I need to go in ( the workforce center) and say that I'm unemployed and I need unemployment money--- it's hard, I feel worthless."
Assistant area director, Sheila Daniels with the center said that those seeking work in the Grand Stand’s hospitality and tourism industry these days may not have much luck landing a job anytime soon.
She said people should almost always expect the area’s job outlook, especially in that field to plunge during the winter months.
“There's just not you know the money, the positions, the hours,” said Daniels, "One thing is that the jobs that are opened there's just so much competition out there, where we've had positions posted through here, you may have 600 people applying for one job, so you know with the economy and all the people that are trying to apply for the few jobs that are out there is just overwhelming."
"I'm going to stay here until summer, I know that much, becauseI know summer will definitely bring, more opportunities for jobs, and I know I know I will have one and I'm not gonna stop looking until I get one," said Fisher.
Daniels said that Grand Strand’s working population is growing because of the retirees settling in the area who still look for jobs in the hospitality and leisure industry.
Greene said Friday that MBAHA will not host their job expo in March because of the lack of available jobs and need from businesses.
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