Beaufort County is one of 74 counties in North Carolina in which the unemployment rate for November declined when compared to the jobless rate for October, according to figures released by the N.C. Division of Employment Security.
Beaufort County’s unemployment rate fell from 10.7 percent in October to 10.5 percent in November, a drop of 0.2 percent.
Beaufort County’s unemployment rate has been above 10 percent each month in 2011 from January through November.
Out of the state’s 100 counties, unemployment rates in November decreased in 20 counties and remained the same in six counties. Thirty-nine of the 100 counties were at or below the state’s unadjusted unemployment rate of 9.5 percent for November.
“I think we’ve ticked down very slowly over the past three months,” said Patrick Oswalt, supervisor of the DES office in Washington, on Wednesday.
Oswalt said that decline has happened in one or two tenths of a percentage point in recent months.
“Some of our skilled construction workers went back to work. You have folks were who coming off unemployment (insurance benefits). When you combine those two things, you have a slight decrease,” Oswalt said.
Unemployed workers who have exhausted their unemployment insurance benefits are not counted among members of the work force who are not working.
“Unemployment rates continued to drop across North Carolina in November,” said N.C. Department of Commerce Deputy Secretary Dale Carroll. “Over the year (2011), rates have decreased in 71 counties. We remain focused on assisting our customers at our DES offices and JobLink Career Centers statewide.”
Beaufort County’s (civilian) work force for November totaled 21,312 people, with 2,233 of that number unable to secure employment, according to DES data. Beaufort County’s work force for October totaled 21,374 people, with 2,268 of that number unable to secure employment, according to DES figures.
Hyde County’s November work force came to 2,807 people, with 280 of them unable to find work, according to DES information. Hyde County’s October work force came to 2,915 people, with 236 of them unable to find work, according to DES figures.
In November, Martin County’s work force totaled 11,358 people, with 1,231 of that number without jobs, according to DES figures.  In October, Martin County’s work force totaled 11,249 people, with 1,218 of that number without jobs, according to DES data.
Washington County’s November work force total 6,510 people, but 786 of them were unemployed, according to DES data. Washington County’s October work force tallied 6,473 people, but 783 of them were unemployed, according to DES data.
For November, not one county had a jobless rate at 5 percent or below. There were 49 counties with unemployment rates between 5 percent and 10 percent. Fifty-four counties had unemployment rates at 10 percent or higher, according to DES figures.
Of the state’s 100 counties, Orange County had the lowest jobless rate in November at 5.8 percent. Scotland County had the highest jobless rate in November at 16.6 percent.

Area Jobless Rates

Beaufort County
October 2011: 10.7%
November 2011: 10.5%
Change: – 0.2%
Hyde County
October 2011: 8.3%
November 2011: 10%
Change: + 1.7%
Martin County
October 2011: 10.9%
November 2011: 10.8%
Change: – 0.1%
Washington County
October 2011: 12.1%
November 2011: 1.1%
Change: None

Source: N.C. Division of Employment Security