Indiana’s unemployment rate is now below 10 percent for the first time in five months. Not everyone is celebrating just yet though.
The drop in the number of unemployed Hoosiers may not necessarily be a sign the economy is getting better here.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that Indiana’s unemployment rate dropped to 9.9 percent last month.
It’s the first time the rate has dropped below 10 percent since April.
Marc Lotter is spokesman for the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.
LOTTER: Decreases in unemployment are always welcomed news. We hope this is a trend but we’re really thinking we should wait for the next few months to see if this is actually a trend or just a one month survey anomaly.
Indiana has been hit hard over the past year with layoffs in manufacturing and steel. Some economists fear Indiana’s unemployment rate could peak at 11 percent or more before a permanent decline takes place.