For the first time in more than a year, Genesee County's unemployment rate was higher than the same period a year earlier in December.
The December rate was 2.9 percent, according to Department of Labor statistics. The prior December it was 2.7 percent. It was 5.7 percent in December 2020.
In Genesee County in December, there were 29,300 local residents in the labor force, with 900 of those people looking for work, compared to 29,000 workers in December 2021, with 800 of them looking for work.
The number of non-farm jobs in Genesee County reported in December was 22,400, up 200 jobs from 2021 but 100 lower than in November, which was 400 lower than October.
The nation's job market remains strong, according to news reports. The economy grew by 517,000 jobs when economists projected more modest growth, about 188,000 jobs.
Genesee County's January numbers won't be available for at least another three weeks.
Meanwhile, economists remain concerned about the declining participation in the labor force of men of prime working age, a trend that started in the 1960s.
