
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, May 4, 1993                   TAG: 9305040039
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

JOBLESS RATE AT 2-YEAR LOW

The Roanoke area's unemployment rate dropped in March to 4.5 percent, its lowest level in almost two years, the Virginia Employment Commission said Monday.

But in another month, when April's rate is computed, the numbers are likely to rise because of already-announced layoffs at Dominion Bank and the Sears Telecatalog Center, said William F. Mezger, the VEC's research economist.

Unemployment fell 0.3 of a percentage point both in Roanoke and statewide, despite the impact of the mid-March blizzard, which caused 1,600 people to file initial claims for unemployment benefits, the VEC said.

The average number of new claims in the Roanoke area increased 14 per week to 297 as a result of the weather, Mezger said. The average number of people drawing benefits decreased 45 to 2,223.

The Roanoke area lost 500 jobs since February, mainly in services, trade and manufacturing. The state gained 6,700 jobs, only one-third of its normal spring increase, Mezger said.

Unemployment rose in some areas of the Shenandoah Valley and Western Virginia as a result of the snowstorm, the agency said.

The March figures also included the first layoffs in the knit textile industry in more than a year in Roanoke, Martinsville, Galax and Emporia, Mezger said. Among them was a partial shutdown at the Tultex sweat-suit sewing plant in Roanoke, as equipment was rearranged for changing styles, said Kathy Rogers of Tultex Corp. of Martinsville.

The textile layoffs pulled the state's average factory work week below 40 hours for the first time in 23 months, Mezger said. The lost time at Tultex reduced the Roanoke-area average work week to 38.7 hours.

The March statistics also continued a trend that began last fall as the state's economy appeared to get a good start on the road to recovery, Mezger said. The state jobless rate was 5.2 percent, the lowest since December 1990.

The normal pickup in spring employment did not occur, he said, because March weather was worse than February's, a reverse of the normal pattern.

The state jobless rate for April probably will drop to about 4.9 percent, Mezger predicted.

\ WESTERN VA. JOBLESS RATES

Mar. Feb.

1993 1993

Bath County 18.2% 14.4%

Bedford, Bedford County 5.2% 5.1%

Bland County 4.0% 3.7%

Buchanan County 11.0% 11.3%

Carroll County 8.0% 6.6%

Covington-Clifton Forge 7.8% 7.8%

Craig County 6.9% 7.9%

Franklin County 3.9% 4.1%

Galax area 6.9% 5.6%

Grayson County 5.8% 4.9%

Lexington, Buena Vista 9.2% 9.6%

Martinsville area 5.1% 5.1%

Smyth County 9.2% 9.7%

Tazewell County 9.2% 9.5%

Washington County 5.1% 5.7%

Wythe County 7.0% 8.3%

by CNB