Jackson County’s unemployment rate stood at 3.5% in December, according to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.

Overall, 21,296 county residents were on the job in December, which is 1,147 fewer than in December 2019 when 22,443 people had jobs. The jobless rate at that time was 2.4%.

The number of county residents reporting they were looking for work in December 2020 was 764. During the same month a year earlier, 476 were job hunting.

The county’s labor force in December was 22,060, which is 859 less than in the same month in 2019.

The county’s unemployment rate for December of this year is lower than the state’s rate of 4% and the national rate of 6.5%.

Other nearby counties and their unemployment rates for December were Bartholomew, 3.3%; Brown, 3.5%; Jennings, 4.3%; Lawrence, 4.1%; Monroe, 3.3%; Scott, 4.2%; and Washington, 3.6%.