S.C.’s jobless rate rises to 9.4 percent in June

South Carolina’s unemployment rate rose to 9.4 percent in June from 9.1 percent in May.

State Department of Employment and Workforce officials attributed the climb to a fall in full-time jobs as schools let out for the summer.

State and local education caused government employment to drop by 4,900 from May to June, and education and health services lost another 1,500 jobs.

On the flip side, leisure and hospitality gained 3,700 jobs as the summer tourist season cranked up. Manufacturing and professional and business services picked up 1,500 jobs each, and construction posted a healthy increase of 1,000 jobs.

The gains were not enough to keep the state’s jobless rate from rising.

The number of unemployed people rose by 6,618 in June to 202,918, and the number of people employed decreased by 9,391 to 1,947,936, state officials said.

The national jobless rate remained unchanged at 8.2 percent.

“While South Carolina’s unemployment rate edged up from May to June, much progress has been made since last year as there were more than 22,000 jobs added,” said Abraham J. Turner, executive director of the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce.

The state jobless rate in June 2011 was 10.5 percent.

The Charleston metro area’s unemployment rate rose from 7.9 percent in May to 8.5 percent in June. In June 2011, the metro area’s jobless rate was 9.2 percent.

Read more in Saturday’s editions of The Post and Courier.