Jobless rate

Ohio’s unemployment rates during the past year: August 2016 ..................................................... 4.9 percent September 2016 ............................................... 5.0 percent October 2016 .................................................... 5.0 percent November 2016 ................................................ 5.0 percent December 2016 ................................................ 5.0 percent January 2017 .................................................... 5.0 percent February 2017 .................................................. 5.1 percent March 2017 ....................................................... 5.1 percent April 2017 ......................................................... 5.0 percent May 2017 .......................................................... 4.9 percent June 2017 .......................................................... 5.0 percent July 2017 ........................................................... 5.2 percent August 2017 ..................................................... 5.4 percent — accommodation and food service — has added 13,700 jobs over the past year.

Private education and health care added 3,800 jobs last month and also hit record employment. That sector has added 21,800 jobs over the past year, more than any other sector.

“Even with the drag in retail, that’s still a good number for service-sector jobs,” Ayers said.

The rise in the jobless rate in recent months doesn’t take away from the Ohio story since the recession ended, said Mekael Teshome, a PNC Bank economist.

Most sectors continue to add jobs, and despite last month’s drop, the number of workers in the labor force has stabilized, he said.

“The best thing is (the employer) numbers and seeing how that’s growing,” he said. “What (worries) me is a continuing decline in the workforce.”