Economics

Report: Ohio's Unemployment Higher Than Official Numbers

Over eleven percent, not seven percent

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A new study by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University says Ohio's real unemployment rate is closer to 11.5 percent, not the 7 percent reported for April 2013.

Ohio's official unemployment rate was 7 percent in April 2013, down from 7.1 percent in March, according to data released Friday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

But when you include in the equation those who have stopped looking for work, the number is much higher, the study claims.

In "Beyond Unemployment: The Full Labor Market Picture of Ohio," authors Keith Hall and Robert Greene examine how the number of people actually participating in the labor force determines the unemployment rate for the state.