December 2008 SC Unemployment Rates

SC Unemployment Rate is 9.5% in December

With momentum from ongoing layoffs and an expanding labor force, South Carolina’s unemployment rate continued to climb in December reaching 9.5%, the State Employment Security Commission reported today. This is more than a full percentage point above November’s rate of 8.4%, and the highest rate since January 1983. The state’s labor force grew nearly 14,300 in December to 2,184,613. The number of unemployed grew almost 25,600 to 207,171, the highest level on record. The national unemployment rate also rose sharply, climbing from 6.7% in November to 7.2% in December.

Unemployment Rates Ranked By County (unadjusted)

Rank – County – December 2008
1 Allendale 19.7%
2 Marion 19.0
3 Chester 17.3
4 Marlboro 16.9
5 Barnwell 15.8
6 Bamberg 15.8
7 Union 14.7
8 Dillon 14.2
McCormick 14.2
Williamsburg 14.2
11 Fairfield 14.1
12 Lancaster 13.9
13 Orangeburg 13.6
14 Cherokee 13.2
15 Chesterfield 13.1
16 Hampton 12.7
17 Clarendon 12.6
18 Lee 12.2
19 Colleton 11.8
Georgetown 11.8
21 Darlington 11.7
22 Horry 11.5
23 Abbeville 11.4
24 Greenwood 11.2
25 Oconee 10.9
26 Sumter 10.7
27 Calhoun 10.1
28 York 9.9
29 Newberry 9.7
30 Anderson 9.6
31 Spartanburg 9.4
32 Laurens 9.3
33 Florence 9.1
34 Edgefield 8.4
Kershaw 8.4
36 Berkeley 8.2
37 Jasper 8.1
38 Pickens 8.0
39 Dorchester 7.9
40 Richland 7.8
41 Aiken 7.7
42 Greenville 7.6
43 Saluda 7.5
44 Beaufort 7.0
45 Charleston 6.9
46 Lexington 6.5

http://eascinc.com/unemployment_rate.html