South Carolina unemployment rate remains relatively flat at 12.5 percent in February

SC jobless rate stays relatively flat in February

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina’s jobless rate remained relatively flat in February, and an expert who tracks the numbers said Friday he sees the news as the beginning of a slow recovery for the state suffering from chronic high unemployment.

“Overall, this month’s report is the best we’ve seen since the recession began,” said Don Schunk, a research economist at Coastal Carolina University. “A recovery is forming, but I expect it to remain fragile for an extended period.”

South Carolina’s jobless count held steady at 12.5 percent, according to data released Friday by the Employment Security Commission. The agency also revised the January unemployment rate down to 12.5 percent from a record-high 12.6 percent.

National unemployment held steady in February, at 9.7 percent.

Officials say all sectors but construction and manufacturing saw growth, with non-farm jobs adding 13,000 positions. South Carolina’s labor force rose nearly 1,400 in February, to about 2.2 million. The number of unemployed people fell by about 1,000, to 271,000.

The government jobs sector showed 2,500 in job gains, but Schunk said the state’s slow economic recovery could be even more fragile for that sector.

“An economic recovery is under way, but significant challenges remain,” Schunk said. “State and local governments in South Carolina have yet to feel the full brunt of the budget crisis, and a significant portion of households continue to directly feel the pain of the recession.”

Marion County marked the state’s highest unemployment rate, at 22.7 percent. Jobless numbers were lowest in Lexington County, at 9.2 percent.

Lawmakers are revamping the agency responsible for collecting unemployment taxes and paying benefits and are expected to move those functions to a new cabinet-level agency under the governor’s control. On Thursday, legislators gave final approval to compromise legislation that creates the new Workforce Department.

The existing Employment Security Commission has been facing criticism for more than a year.

Auditors found the commission didn’t do enough to prevent the state’s jobless benefits trust fund from going broke. And they said the agency was inept at handling responsibilities, including accounting for income tax payments withheld from jobless benefits checks but not sent to the IRS or state Revenue Department.