Hickory metro jobless rate drops, but it's still high

Sharon Horn caught a glimmer of hope Friday morning when she landed her first job interview in months.

"I may not get the job, but I was tickled to get the interview," said the 55-year-old Hickory woman, who has not found a permanent, full-time position since being laid off from Hickory Springs Manufacturing Co.'s Hiddenite plant in March 2008.

While hopeful, Horn was not letting up on her employment search yet. She was at the JobLink Career Center at Catawba Valley Community College's East Campus, checking online job postings early Friday afternoon.

"I'm not going to give up. I'll find something," she said.

While the Greater Hickory Metro continued to lead the state in unemployment in March, statistics released by the N.C. Employment Security Commission on Friday gave reasons to hope the region's jobless rates, which have been rising steadily for months, may be slowing or even reversing.

Unemployment in the Greater Hickory Metro was 15.4 percent in March, down slightly from 15.6 percent in February. It remained the highest jobless rate among the state's 14 metropolitan statistical areas.

Catawba County's unemployment rate reached 15.6 percent in March, up from 15 percent in February.

The county's March rate was the highest it has been since February 1975.

Other area rates for March were 14.6 percent in Alexander County, down from 15.7 percent in February; 15.6 percent in Burke County, down from 15.9 percent in February; and 15.3 percent in Caldwell County, down from 16.4 percent in February.

Hickory's unemployment rate in March was 12.8 percent, up from 12.5 percent in February.

Unemployment rates decreased in 84 of North Carolina's 100 counties in March, according to the N.C. Employment Security Commission.

Catawba County was one of 11 counties in which rates increased.

Among the state's 14 metropolitan statistical areas, Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton ranked No. 1 in joblessness for the third consecutive month. It was followed by Rocky Mount, where the unemployment rate was 14.1 percent in March.

Orange County had the state's lowest unemployment rate, at 6.1 percent, in March. Scotland County had the highest jobless rate, at 16.6 percent.

Statewide, the unemployment rate was 10.8 percent in March, up from 10.7 percent in February. The national jobless rate was 8.5 percent, up from 8.1 percent in February.

"While many of our counties are experiencing a slight decrease in unemployment, our state still faces significant challenges because of the national recession," said Moses Carey Jr., N.C. Employment Security Commission chairman.

The Employment Security Commission said approximately 13,400 more people in the Greater Hickory Metro were unemployed in March 2009 than in March 2008. About 7,000 of those people had been employed in manufacturing.

Since the beginning of the national recession in December 2007, North Carolina has lost 76,000 manufacturing jobs.

"Manufacturing has taken a heavy hit statewide, which is at the root of the dramatic rise in unemployment in our region," said Allan Mackie, manager of the Employment Security Commission office in Catawba County.

About 33 percent of the region's jobs are in manufacturing, compared to a national average of 12 percent.

Margaret S. Allen worked in furniture for more than four decades, including 37 years with Broyhill.

Laid off from a job at Southwood Furniture in February, Allen is working about four hours a week at a fast-food restaurant to supplement her Social Security income.

The 68-year-old Hickory woman visited JobLink Friday afternoon to do an online job search.

"I have bills to pay and Social Security is just not enough," Allen said.

"Plus, I like to work, always have. But it's hard to find anything right now."

Mackie said the decline in unemployment rates in Alexander, Burke and Caldwell counties is a positive sign for the region. He is hopeful Catawba County's jobless rate will begin to drop in the coming months.

Much depends on what happens with consumer spending, as well as the effects of stimulus efforts on the economy, Mackie said.

One area of particular concern, Mackie said, is General Motors Corp.'s plan to temporarily close most of its U.S. factories for up to nine weeks this summer.

Catawba County has several automobile industry suppliers, including Getrag and ZF Lemforder Corp.
"Nine weeks is a long time," Mackie said.

"We'll have to see what the impact of that is on local suppliers."