By Annie Goeller, Daily Journal of Johnson County staff writer
The county's unemployment rate dropped to its lowest point since last year, but local assistance agencies said the lingering effect of joblessness will keep people coming for help through next year.
Johnson County's unemployment rate was 7.4 percent in September, down from 7.8 percent in August. The new count showed nearly 400 fewer people out of work, according to a release from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.
The September rate was the lowest since December, when the county's unemployment rate was 6.2 percent.
But those numbers don't necessarily mean that local residents are having an easier time paying bills or finding a job, economists and nonprofit leaders said.
"In a lot of cases, things are still pretty bad for people," Indiana University economics professor Bill Witte said.
The InterChurch Food Pantry fed 692 families last month, a 28 percent increase over the previous year. And they are on track to do the same this month, director LaTheda Noonan said.
Noonan hasn't heard from a single client who has found a new job after losing one during the recession. Now, she is starting to see people at the pantry who have been without a job for more than 13 months and their unemployment benefits are about to run out, she said.
"It's not over. The government may be recovering, but it's going to be a long recovery for the person that's started coming to the food pantry," she said.
The most recent unemployment figures show that people are finding jobs, economists said.
Indiana's unemployment rate, which fell to 9.6 percent in September from 9.9 percent in August, is better than surrounding states. And both the logistics and manufacturing sectors are doing more work and hiring people, University of Indianapolis professor Matt Will said.
But the numbers have much room for improvement, he said.
Economists have concerns about a second recession, what will happen next year when the economic stimulus program ends and the national unemployment rate continues to climb through the beginning of next year, Witte and Will said.
The country is recovering from the recession, but that recovery begins at the lowest point, Witte said.
"Recovery means it's starting to get better, but it's still really bad," he said.
Many people who are finding work are getting only part-time hours or significantly less pay than in past jobs.
"The jobs out there, they aren't family-sustaining. They're just to get you by. There are no well-paying, career jobs out there now," said Thom Hord, director of The Refuge, a nonprofit assistance agency in Greenwood.
The number of people seeking help from The Refuge continues to rise, including six new families who came to the agency's food pantry Tuesday, he said.
"It's just not getting any better," Hord said.
Even the people who are finding jobs will continue to need help for at least the first few months, he said.
If they find a job, families are months behind in bills because they have been shorting or delaying payments while they were without work, he said.
He has heard from families asking if they can continue to get help for a few months so they can get back to paying their bills in full and on time, Hord said.
And he expects family visits to increase as the holiday season approaches.
People try to put all their resources toward giving their children Christmas presents, and that may mean they need extra help with food or paying bills, he said.
Noonan believes the food pantry will need to continue to help families for several months after they find a job.
Social service organizations usually see the impact of a recession the longest as people continue to struggle even as the unemployment rate drops, she said.
Johnson County's unemployment rate has dropped since it reached a high of 8.7 percent in March.
In September, Johnson County remained one of the Indiana counties with the lowest unemployment rate, ranked at 79 of 92 counties.