COLUMBIA, S.C. — According to the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW), the latest unemployment rate is 3.5%.
"Unemployment is fast approaching the pre-pandemic levels that we were at in February 2020," said Erica Von Hessen, research economist for DEW.
During the peak of the pandemic, the rate topped at 11.5%.
Hessen said the Palmetto State is one of 14 states that saw more people work or look for work than pre-pandemic.
"We have been hitting record levels of employed South Carolinians over the past several months," Hessen said. "Our labor force has grown over the pandemic. "We also have a ton of demand. So, businesses are still out there trying to hire workers, and, even though we have a lot more people in the labor force now, we need even more."
Back in February of 2020, the state's unemployment rate was 2.8%. Hessen explains, more people are working now than in the past because more jobs came to the state.
"In February 2020, we had 2,365,321 people either looking for work or working. Of those, 65,980 were unemployed," Hessen said. "In December 2021, we had more people either looking for work or working—2,405,807. Of those, 85,090 were unemployed. So, while we have slightly more people unemployed in December 2021 compared to February 2020, we also have a larger number of people in the labor force who are working."
Hessen said with more people moving to South Carolina, it increases the number of people either looking for work, or working.
"In addition to the large number of job openings that we have in the state, we've also seen a large amount of shuffling, so it's not that people are quitting jobs to leave the labor market per se, but we have seen a lot of people quitting jobs for different opportunities," Hessen said.
Some industries have been able to recover quickly during the pandemic, others are still struggling to come back.
"The construction industry really benefited from that. Leisure and hospitality is the one that's still struggling the most. They're still down about 8% in terms of employment levels compared to February 2020."
Hessen said there are a number of reasons why the Leisure and Hospitality industry is still struggling.
"Leisure and Hospitality was the industry that was most impacted by the shutdowns—employment in that sector essentially was cut in half," Hessen explained. "So, they have had the longest hole to climb out of. Also, not every business in that sector has come back in the same way that they were operating pre-pandemic."
Hessen also added the transportation industry is also thriving because more people are ordering more things to their homes.
Unemployment claims may increase in the coming weeks as seasonal jobs end and people are looking for a new job.