COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - State officials say that South Carolina’s unemployment rate was unchanged over the month of January, as state employment reached a new record high.
The Department of Employment and Workforce said in a news release Monday that unemployment in South Carolina remained at 2.4%, the same as a revised figure for December.
The number of working South Carolinians grew by more than 4,000 from December and was up more than 43,000 compared to January 2019. Sectors with the most over-the-month gains were education and health services and professional and business services, which added a combined 2,800 jobs.
Workforce Director Dan Ellzey said that, while impacts of COVID-19 on the state are yet unknown, the department knows that unemployment could be affected and is making preparations.
The national unemployment rate in January was 3.6%.
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