CBER in the News

22 July 2021 - Dalton Godbey (WDRB)

The unemployment rate in Kentucky rose 1.6% in just 30 days last month.

The rate sat at 3.9% unemployed in May, and surged to 5.5% in the month of June.

"One of the things we're hearing from a lot of employers is that they have jobs and they're having a hard time finding people to fill those jobs," said Michael Clark, Director of the Center for Business and Economic Research for the University of Kentucky.

15 July 2021 - Steve Rogers (WTVQ)

Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted preliminary June 2021 unemployment rate was 4.4%, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics, an agency within the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet.

The preliminary June 2021 jobless rate was down 0.1 percentage points from the revised 4.5% in May 2021 and down 1.3 percentage points from the 5.7% recorded for the state one year ago when restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 limited certain business operations.

1 July 2021 - Karah Wilson (McLean County News)

As of May 2021, McLean County’s unemployment rate is 3.6%, 5% less than in May 2020, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics.

As of May, 141 residents were unemployed and 3,795 were employed. The unemployment rate in April 2021 was 3.5%.

On June 28, KET's Renee Shaw spoke with panelists including Mike Clark and Ken Troske about the state's labor shortage and how companies are facing hiring challenges as they seek to keep pace with the economic recovery. Watch now.

17 June 2021 - Steve Rogers (WTVQ)

Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted preliminary May 2021 unemployment rate was 4.5%, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS), an agency within the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet (EWDC).

The preliminary May 2021 jobless rate was down 0.2 percentage points from April 2021 and down 6.4 percentage points from the 10.9% recorded for the state one year ago when the restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 limited certain business operations.

22 May 2021 - Northern KY Tribune

Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted preliminary April 2021 unemployment rate was 4.7%, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS).

The preliminary April 2021 jobless rate was down 0.3 percentage points from March 2021 and down 12.2 percentage points from the 16.9% recorded for the state one year ago when the restrictions put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19 had the largest impact on the state’s economy.

21 May 2021 - Karolina Buczek (WLEX)

LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — As Kentucky emerges from the pandemic, the focus is shifting to the state's economic outlook. Gov. Andy Beshear says everything is looking good.

"Nearly every day, we are seeing signs that Kentucky's economy isn't just coming back, it is truly roaring back," Beshear told a crowd in Montgomery County on Thursday.

He backed that claim up with analysis from rating agencies.

18 May 2020 - Jason Thomas (Louisville Business First)

Kentucky’s economy continues to operate below pre-pandemic levels as employers struggle to fill open positions across the commonwealth.

That’s the takeaway from a recently released Kentucky Chamber of Commerce report.

16 April 2021 - Tom Latek (Kentucky Today)

There were some possible signs of an improving economy on Thursday. Kentucky’s jobless rate in March declined from the previous month as did the number of jobless claims nationwide.

Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted preliminary March 2021 unemployment rate was 5%, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics, part of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet.  That was down 0.2% from February, but up 0.8% from the 4.2% recorded for the state one year ago, before the COVID-19 pandemic really took hold with mass lay-offs.

16 April 2021 - Northern Kentucky Tribune

Kentucky’s seasonally adjusted preliminary March 2021 unemployment rate was 5%, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS).

The preliminary March 2021 jobless rate was down 0.2 percentage points from February 2021 and up 0.8 percentage points from the 4.2% recorded for the state one year ago.

The U.S. seasonally adjusted jobless rate for March 2021 was 6%, down from the 6.2% reported in February 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.