TRIAD – The employment picture in the greater High Point area hasn’t changed significantly for the past several months, presenting the classic good news-bad news dilemma.

The good news is that jobs aren’t disappearing at the blistering pace of early 2009, when the recession gripped employers across the spectrum of the economy. The bad news is that job growth isn’t making a noticeable dent in the unemployment numbers, meaning that it remains tough for people seeking a steady paycheck.

Jobless rates changed little from October to November in the city of High Point and surrounding counties, according to figures released this week by the N.C. Employment Security Commission.

The city jobless rate was 11 percent in November, unchanged from October. Guilford County’s unemployment level inched down from 11.2 percent in October to 11 percent in November, as did Davidson County’s rate from 13.1 percent to 13 percent. Randolph County’s rate edged up from 11.2 percent to 11.4 percent, according to the ESC.

The region reflected the state’s mixed job market during November. Jobless rates increased in 60 counties, declined in 31 and remained unchanged in nine.

“Job losses in North Carolina appear to have bottomed out in July, but few improvements have occurred since then. Local labor markets are just drifting along the bottom of the recession,” said John Quinterno, a principal at South by North Strategies Ltd., a Chapel Hill-based research firm specializing in economic and social policy.

Compared to one year ago, jobless rates were higher in every North Carolina county and metropolitan area, Quinterno reports.

“Right now there is a tremendous amount of idle labor in North Carolina. Even though conditions have stabilized in recent months, what growth is occurring is insufficient to bring down joblessness ...,” Quinterno said.

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Benefits

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The N.C. Employment Security Commission reports that the state job service agency paid $4.64 billion in unemployment benefits to North Carolinians out of work from December 2008 to November 2009. The benefits include $241.1 million in Guilford County, $101.4 million in Davidson County and $77.3 million in Randolph County.

The ESC recently received access to millions of dollars in extended jobless benefits because of action taken late last year by Congress and President Barack Obama. The ESC reports this week it has begun to pay out the funds to eligible out-of-work state residents.