"Dirty" Harry Reid's doing a great job for his state...upemployment UP to 14.3%...

Great Job "Dirty" Harry Reid!


Nevada jobless rate rises to 14.3 percent

By JENNIFER ROBISON

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL Nevada's jobless rate has ticked up slightly, from 14.2 percent in October to 14.3 percent in November, the state Department of Employment, Training & Rehabilitation reported this morning.

In Las Vegas, joblessness increased from 14.1 percent to 14.3 percent.

In all, 185,900 Nevadans are unemployed and seeking jobs. That figure includes 137,000 Las Vegans.

The small gains in unemployment follow October's dip, the first in five years. Despite the increase, the employment department said signs point to continued stabilization in joblessness, with the state's unemployment rate hovering between 14.2 percent and 14.4 percent since June. In the same period in 2008 and 2009, joblessness had jumped 1.6 percentage points and 1.4 percentage points respectively.

"The stabilizing unemployment rate indicates that the worst of the recession is over. However, the unemployment rate will likely remain elevated well into 2011 before declining slowly over a number of years," said Bill Anderson, the employment department's chief economist, in a statement.

Results of the employer survey showed a decline in non-farm employment.

Employers shed roughly 2,500 jobs between October and November. The leisure and hospitality industry cut 2,900 positions, while the construction industry shed 1,500. Construction employment fell below 60,000 jobs in Nevada for the first time since February 1995. Employment in the manufacturing industry continues to contract, falling by 400 to 37,800. Since peaking in September 2006, manufacturing employment has fallen by 13,500, or 26.3 percent.

But some industries showed improvement in November.

Retail trade added 1,300 jobs, and is up by over 4,000 since the start of 2010. Professional and business services increased by 900 and education and health services added 500.

Unemployment nationwide came in at 9.8 percent in November.

Nevada has led the nation in unemployment since May.