County's unemployment rate remains close to 9 percent

Henderson County unemployment figures continue to run about 3 percent worse than a year ago, according to numbers released Friday by the Texas Workforce Commission.

October figures, the latest to be released, have the county at 8.5 percent unemployment, maintaining the same number that was seen in September and up from the 8.2 percent jobless rast posted in August.

Those same months in 2008 saw jobless rates significantly lower.

In August 2008, unemployment was at 5.6 percent; September 2008, 5.5 percent; and October 2008, 5.7 percent.

The 8.5 percent unemployment rate for the past two months this year is the highest so far in 2009, and October marked the fifth consecutive month the county has been at, or above, the 8 percent mark.

Henderson County's jobless rate has been below 7 percent only once this year - at 6.7 percent in April.

In 2008, the lowest rate (in April) was 4.3 percent and the highest (December) was 6.3 percent.

November unemployment numbers are expected to be released by the TWC on Dec. 18.