Coronavirus and York County jobs: Why record unemployment is just part of the story.
Record high unemployment numbers in South Carolina paint only part of the picture for York County workers.
Yet it’s a pretty stark picture.
“While South Carolina’s high unemployment rate is shocking compared to the record lows we recently enjoyed, I am sure that this news isn’t a surprise to anyone,” said Dan Ellzey, executive director of the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce.
That department has released new data for April. The first full month of data from job losses related to coronavirus and the social distancing measures shows dramatic change compared to March and April 2019.
Seasonally adjusted — figures that balance seasonal swings like summer tourism or non-summer school employment — and raw data show:
▪ The state unemployment rate for April is a record 12.1%. In March is was 3.2%. The April rate is the highest overall and the largest month-to-month increase in the history of state data back to 1976.
▪ The national unemployment rate went from 4.4% in March to 14.7% in April. The April figure is the highest rate and month-to-month increase in data that goes back to 1948.
▪ A survey of South Carolina households shows there are almost 2.01 million workers in the state. That figure is down almost 240,000 from March 2020, and almost 204,000 workers from April 2019.
▪ The same survey estimates there are more than 288,000 unemployed people. That figure is up more than 210,000 people, each from March and from April 2019. It’s the largest month-to-month increase and the highest overall level on record in South Carolina.
▪ A survey of state businesses found a seasonally adjusted of 272,000 fewer non-farm payroll jobs. The are almost 1.93 million total jobs. No industries reported gains from March, or from April of 2019.
The biggest jobs losses came in leisure and hospitality; professional and business services; education and health services; and trade, transportation and utilities. Hospitality was down by more than 125,000 jobs both in a month and in the year prior.
Non-seasonally adjusted jobs showed almost the exact same picture. No industries grew in a month or year, with hospitality taking the hardest hit.
Furlough, hour reduction
The listed number of unemployed, at more than 288,000 people, is far less than the more than 500,000 unemployed from the past 10 weeks of claim data issued by the workforce department. There are several reasons for the difference.
The employment survey with the lower amount is taken mid-month. The weekly claim data started with the surge of coronavirus unemployment and happens more often and is more recent.
The workforce department estimates there may be tens of thousands of people whose businesses have furloughs. That could lead to a claim for unemployment benefits without an actual job loss. Similarly, some workers may have hour reductions that make them eligible for unemployment benefits.
York County employment picture
York County unemployment statistics from the workforce department, for now, reflect only data from March. Unemployment then was 2.8%.
Social distancing measures hit in mid-March. The last two weeks in March saw 2,328 unemployment claims in York County — York, Lancaster and Chester combined for 3,246 claims — while April brought still more. From March 29 to May 5, York County had 14,048 claims. The tri-county had 20,874 total in that span.
Through March, workforce data shows York County had 4,836 job openings. Prior to coronavirus there were about 800 more available jobs than unemployed people.
About 65% of unemployment claims came from women. About the same percentage were white, with less than 25% from black workers. Ages 25-40 had the most claims, at more than 40%.
Accommodation and food services unemployment in York county outpaced the state — it was the top overall segment — as did manufacturing and retail. Healthcare and administrative support claims in York County were a little lower than the state percentage for those same jobs.
Sixty-one percent of all York County businesses have four or fewer employees. Businesses with fewer than 20 employees account for 86%. Still, the 11 businesses in York County that each employ more than 1,000 people total more than 17,000 employees.
Retail, manufacturing and food or accommodation services make up the largest employment sectors in York County.
Charlotte impact on York County
Mobility is another key factor in York and Lancaster counties’ unemployment scene. Only a quarter of workers in York County live and work in York County.
About 34% of workers come from other counties, including Mecklenburg in North Carolina which sends about three times as many workers to York County as Lancaster or Chester counties.
More than 40% of York County workers travel outside the county for work. About five times as many York County residents travel into Mecklenburg County for work as to all other outside counties combined, according to workforce data.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows North Carolina unemployment jumped from 3.6% in February to 4.3% in March, then nearly tripled to 12.2% in April. Except for financial activities which held a little better than steady, North Carolina saw year-to-year losses in all sectors for April.
Those labor statistics also list data for the Charlotte, Gastonia and Rock Hill combined area. March unemployment for that region was 3.9%. Financial activities grew more than 3% from April 2019 to April 2020, though it was down in recent months prior to COVID-19. Leisure and hospitality were down more than 58% this April compared to last.
This story was originally published May 24, 2020 at 10:37 AM with the headline "Coronavirus and York County jobs: Why record unemployment is just part of the story.."
