Northeast Indiana counties among those with highest unemployment rates for May 2009

Greater Fort Wayne BUsiness Weekly

Five northeast Indiana counties were among the top 10 in the state with the highest unemployment rates for the month of May.

Elkhart County, at 17.5 percent, had the second-highest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, according to a preliminary report by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development released Friday. Noble County was third at 17.3 percent; LaGrange County fourth at 16.6 percent; Steuben County eighth at 15.7 percent; and Adams County 10th at 15.1 percent.

Howard County had the highest unemployment rate in the state, 19.3 percent. The county is home to four Chrysler LLC transmission and casting plants that were shut down in May after the automaker declared bankruptcy.

Indiana's overall unemployment increased from 9.9 percent in April to 10.6 percent in May, according to the Department of Workforce Development. Unemployment rates for May in neighboring states were: Illinois, 10.1 percent; Kentucky, 10.6 percent; Ohio, 10.8 percent; and Michigan, 14.1 percent.

Nationwide, the unemployment rate in May was 9.4 percent.

"As expected, extended furloughs and layoffs in the U.S. auto industry greatly affected Indiana's employment picture in May," Teresa Voors, Department of Workforce Development commissioner, said in a statement Friday. "Indiana may see the ripple effect over the next few months as suppliers, dealerships and other service providers adjust to the new business models of the domestic auto companies."

May seasonally adjusted unemployment rates for other northeast Indiana counties were: DeKalb, 14 percent; Huntington, 13.8 percent; Wabash, 13.6 percent; Whitley, 13.2 percent; Kosciusko, 12.5 percent; Wells, 11.4 percent; and Allen, 10.7 percent.