The county's jobless rate dipped to 5.0 percent, down from 5.3 percent in October, according to figures just released by the Employment Security Commission of North Carolina in Raleigh.
Moore was one of only six counties in the state whose unemployment rates declined. The rate rose in 91 counties and remained the same in the other three.
But the news was not all good for Moore County. Actual employment in the county decreased in November, to 28,340 Moore Countians with jobs compared with 28,580 in October. But actual unemployment also decreased, to 1,500 Moore Countians out of work compared with 1,590 in October. The disparity came about because the county's estimated work force declined by 330 persons during the month, from 30,170 in October to 29,840 in November.
There is more bad news on the horizon for Moore County. The effects of the phased closing of the Stanley Furniture Co. plant in Carthage, announced last month, won't show up in the jobless rate until February, when the plant lays off the first of its 400 workers.
Moore County's unemployment rate in November dipped below the national rate, which reversed the local statistic by rising to 5.3 percent from 5.0 percent a month earlier. The state unemployment rate rose to 6.0 percent in November from 5.4 percent in October. North Carolina's jobless rate has been higher than the national rate since last February. (None of the figures is adjusted for seasonal influences.)
The unemployment rate for the Southern Pines-Raeford Labor Area, which incorporates both Moore and Hoke counties, was 6.4 percent in November, up from 6.1 percent in October.
Of the nine counties that adjoin Moore County, only one, Montgomery, reported an unemployment rate increase in November. The November rates for the nine counties were: Chatham, 3.4 percent (up from 3.1 percent in October); Cumberland, 5.7 percent (up from 5.2 percent); Harnett, 6.6 percent (up from 5.9 percent); Hoke, 9.9 percent (up from 8.3 percent); Lee, 7.3 percent (up from 6.5 percent); Montgomery, 6.9 percent (down from 7.2 percent); Randolph, 5.5 percent (up from 5.2 percent); Richmond, 12.0 percent (up from 10.3 percent); and Scotland, 9.6 percent (up from 9.4 percent).
Cleveland County had the state's highest unemployment rate in November, at 13.1 percent, compared with 11.6 percent in October. Layoffs in that county within the manufacturing industries contributed to the spike. They layoffs were in textiles, chemicals and allied products, stone, glass, clay and concrete.
The largest increase in the unemployment rate in November occurred in Transylvania County. The rate increased to 9.8 percent from 3.4 percent in October, mainly due to layoffs in the paper manufacturing and fabricated metal products industries.
Other North Carolina counties with the highest unemployment rates in November were Edgecombe, 12.8 percent; Richmond, 12.0 percent; Anson, 11.6 percent; and Swain, 11.5 percent.
Even Watauga County, which had the state's lowest unemployment rate at 2.0 percent, experienced a rate increase of 0.3 percent from October.
Other counties with the lowest unemployment rates in November were Orange, 2.5 percent; Gates, 2.9 percent; Macon, 3.1 percent; and Currituck and Jackson, each 3.2 percent.
