Obion Co. Unemployment Office Busy Since Goodyear Closure
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With Goodyear gone, it’s no surprise that Obion County now has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state. In fact, it has the second highest unemployment rate in Aug. Tennessee’s county-by-county unemployment figures were released Thursday, Sept. 22nd and showed the county at 17.2 percent; which jumped from 11.4 percent in July. This means more than 3,000 people are out of work in Obion County. Denise Reynolds, Tennessee Career Center manager, knows why, “The increase was because of the Goodyear Tire & Rubber company,” she said. “Those people were out of work effective July 11th and filed for unemployment benefits effective that week, so that boosted the numbers significantly for this area.” August marks the fourth consecutive month the unemployment rate has increased in Obion County. “We need jobs, that’s the main thing as this time. We have some employers that are doing some hiring, of course this is coming up on the slow season of the year, but the main thing we really need is jobs in this area, for these people to find,” continues Reynolds. Of the 10 counties in the state with the highest unemployment rates for last month, four of them are located in northwest Tennessee. Scott County, northwest of Knoxville, had the highest August unemployment rate in the state at 19.7 percent, and ranked third was Weakley County at 15.2 percent.
