At a glance
Top unemployment rates in Indiana cities with a population of at least 25,000 in March:
- Marion: 9.2 percent.
- Kokomo: 8.2 percent.
- East Chicago: 8 percent.
- Anderson: 7.7 percent.
- Elkhart: 7.3 percent.
Top unemployment rates in Indiana counties in March:
- Fayette County: 10.9 percent.
- Crawford County: 8.9 percent.
- Grant County: 7.7 percent.
- Huntington County: 7.7 percent.
- Miami County: 7.6 percent.
Source: Indiana Department of Workforce Development
The unemployment rate in Marion rose to 9.2 percent in March - the highest level of any city in Indiana with a population of at least 25,000.
That rate is an increase from 8.4 percent of Marion residents in February and is even higher than the level of 7.2 percent in March 2007.
Mayor Wayne Seybold said recent cutbacks at General Motors and Dana Corp. have resulted in some of the recent increased in the city's jobless numbers.
"We've just got some adjustment there," he said.
Seybold said the unemployment rate is down from about 13 percent around the time he took office in early 2004.
"We're working hard on bringing jobs in and retraining the work force," he said, adding that diversifying the local job market is a major key to keeping the jobless number low.
Tim Eckerle, executive director of the Grant County Economic Growth Council, said the GM layoffs were the huge contribution to the increased unemployment rate in Marion.
"We've seen some sluggishness locally," he said. "It's been troubling. In the meantime, we see (local businesses) hiring."
Eckerle explained that the labor force estimates published monthly by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development are not always an accurate representation of the actual situation on the ground. This is because the numbers are compiled based on a national survey of just 60,000 households and then projected across the state's counties and cities using census data.
Allison Leeuw of the research and analysis division at the DWD said the statistical model of Indiana's labor force estimate is built on a combination of factors, including the national census data and unemployment claims within the state.
"In simple terms, the unemployment rate is the number of people looking for work divided by the total number of people in the labor force," Leeuw said.
Leeuw said city unemployment rates combine an even larger variety of factors, including people getting unemployment insurance, self-employed and agriculture workers and those who may have exhausted their unemployment benefits.
Despite best efforts, the local area unemployment statistics model is an imperfect one, she said. The numbers cannot account for a number of factors, including the difference between full-time and part-time workers, underemployed workers, people who are overqualified for their jobs or those who have become so discouraged that they've completely given up on searching for a job.
Seybold said the loss of area jobs can reflect poorly on the city but should be more reflective of employers and other external factors.
GM had to lay off workers, he said, not because of Marion but because supplier American Axle & Manufacturing hasn't been able to work out a contract with the UAW. As for the announcement this week that Home Depot was closing its doors in Marion, Seybold blamed the company's choice of location - very close to its competitor, Lowe's - when it opened in Marion five years ago.
"Home Depot made a bad business decision," Seybold said. "Now it's paying the price, having to close the store. It couldn't get past people in the area being loyal to Lowe's."
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