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Ohio's Jobless Rate Dips Slightly in March

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March's unemployment rate is down tenth a point from February.

The state’s jobless rate edged down a bit last month to its lowest level since October 2015. 

The unemployment rate for March came in at 4.4 percent, which is still higher than the national average but is down a tenth of a point from February and more than a half a point from the same time last year.

Big gains were made in manufacturing, government, transportation and utilities and construction. But Cleveland economist George Zeller says there’s good and bad news in these numbers.

Ohio has gained more jobs in the last three months than all of last year. But Zeller says the state’s job growth is still below the national average – and has been for more than five years. And he’s already warning about next month’s numbers because of mass layoffs announced at the General Motors assembly plant in Lordstown.

Karen is a lifelong Ohioan who has served as news director at WCBE-FM, assignment editor/overnight anchor at WBNS-TV, and afternoon drive anchor/assignment editor in WTAM-AM in Cleveland. In addition to her daily reporting for Ohio’s public radio stations, she’s reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio News and other news outlets. She hosts and produces the Statehouse News Bureau’s weekly TV show “The State of Ohio”, which airs on PBS stations statewide. She’s also a frequent guest on WOSU TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, a regular panelist on “The Sound of Ideas” on ideastream in Cleveland, appeared on the inaugural edition of “Face the State” on WBNS-TV and occasionally reports for “PBS Newshour”. She’s often called to moderate debates, including the Columbus Metropolitan Club’s Issue 3/legal marijuana debate and its pre-primary mayoral debate, and the City Club of Cleveland’s US Senate debate in 2012.