Jacksonville’s unemployment rate jumped higher in July, as new entrants into the labor force had difficulty finding jobs.

The jobless rate in the Jacksonville metropolitan area — consisting of Duval, Baker, Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties — rose from 11.2 percent in June to 11.7 percent in July, the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation said Friday.

The labor agency said Florida’s statewide unemployment rate rose from a seasonally-adjusted 11.4 percent to 11.5 percent last month. The agency does not adjust the Jacksonville data for seasonal factors. But the University of North Florida’s Local Economic Indicators Project said that when the local data is seasonally adjusted, it still shows a big increase in Jacksonville’s unemployment rate from 10.3 percent to 10.9 percent last month.

“It’s a further indication that the economy is not strong,” said UNF economist Paul Mason.

The Georgia Department of Labor said Thursday that the state’s unemployment rate fell by a tenth of a point to a seasonally-adjusted 9.9 percent last month. But Georgia Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond attributed that decline to discouraged workers dropping out of the labor force. People who don’t have a job but not actively looking for work, because they are discouraged, are not counted as officially unemployed.

Jacksonville is experiencing the opposite trend, with the number of people in the labor force rising by about 3,000 last month. If they don’t have a job, those new entrants are immediately counted as unemployed.

“High school and college graduates are having a tough time getting jobs,” Mason said.

Florida had a net gain of 2,700 jobs in the past 12 months, which was touted as “encouraging news” by Agency for Workforce Innovation Director Cynthia Lorenzo in a press release. But Jacksonville has experienced a net loss of 2,800 jobs.

Weak industries in the Jacksonville area include financial activities, which has lost 2,500 jobs in the past year; construction, which has lost 2,300; and manufacturing, which is down 1,200. But a couple of industry sectors are adding jobs: education and health services has gained 2,400 and retail trade has added 2,100.

John Godfrey, chief economist at Florida Economic Associates in Jacksonville, said the increase in retail jobs is encouraging news.

“I do take that as a sign that businesses see more spending,” he said.

Godfrey said the weak housing market, which continues to hurt the construction industry, is holding back the economic recovery.

“We’re muddling through the recovery without one of the key drivers firing on all cylinders,” he said.

mark.basch@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4308

link: http://jacksonville.com/business/2010-08-20/story/jobless-rate-jump...