Jobless rate 3rd highest in country

Ohio’s jobless rate is going in the wrong direction.

The state’s unemployment rate climbed to 5.4 percent in August from 5.2 percent in July and 4.9 percent in May, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said Friday.

The last time the rate was this high was September 2014.

The rate is now a full percentage point higher than the U.S. rate and ties Kentucky’s as third-highest in the country. Alaska has the highest rate and New Mexico is second.

“Clearly, we’re not trending in the right direction for the unemployment rate,” said Ben Ayers, senior economist at Nationwide.

Retail woes get some of the blame.

JCPenney, Sears, Macy’s and Kmart are among a number of retailers that have been closing stores as shoppers increasingly buy online. Other retailers have gone bankrupt. Many of the affected stores didn’t actually close until recently.

Retailers cut 2,700 jobs last month, and companies in wholesale trade cut 2,000 jobs.

Over the past year, the sector that includes retail and wholesale trade has lost 10,200 jobs.

“Retail is 12-13 percent of private employment,” Ayers said. “That’s a sizeable chunk when you start losing jobs from a sector that makes up more than a tenth of state employment. You’ll have some payback for sure.”

Also, hiring in manufacturing, a key component of the Ohio economy, has been substantially flat over the past year, adding just 2,100 jobs.

Overall, the number of jobless workers increased by 11,000 in the month to 311,000, according to the state. Also, 17,000 workers left the labor force last month.

Meanwhile, the report showed that employers did add 5,200 jobs during the month and 57,100 over the past year.

The state’s unemployment report is made up of two surveys: one of households and one of employers, and they don’t always move in the same direction, as was the case in August.

The government sector shed 5,900 jobs, the most of any sector. The government sector has been volatile, especially during the summer months as the school year ends and then ramps back up.

The trade, transportation and utilities sector — the sector that includes retail — cut 4,500 jobs.

The leisure and hospitality sector added 6,600 jobs, more than any other sector last month. One chunk of that sector, — arts, entertainment and recreation — hit record employment last month and a second chunk