NC went from single county with more than 10% unemployment to 77 within a month

RALEIGH, N.C. — On Wednesday, the North Carolina Department of Commerce released April unemployment numbers for every county across the state.

April was the first full month of the coronavirus pandemic.

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North Carolina has 100 counties. In March, 71 of the counties had unemployment below 5%. In April, none did. In March, only one county had unemployment over 10%. In April, 77 did.

April unemployment numbers for several counties in our area:

Union County: 10.3%
Cabarrus County: 12.3%
Mecklenburg County: 12.8%
Gaston County: 13.9%
Iredell County: 14.2%

All of the figures are still lower than the national rate, which is 14.7%.

And, remember, a lot of places are back open so, hopefully, May’s numbers will reflect that.

The foothills and mountains were hit especially hard with unemployment going over 20% in Alexander County. But a few counties around Charlotte stayed in single digits, including Anson and Stanly.

Sharon Blackmon lives in Gaston County and told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke she worked in the mental health field, but has been out of work since April 1.

ALSO READ: Many out of work still having problems filing for unemployment in NC

“Stressed out. Worried because rent of course is past due. Car payment is past due. Light bill is past due. Everything is past due,” she said.

Blackmon said she applied for unemployment, but like so many, she had trouble getting through. She’s still waiting for the first check, a job, or hopefully both.

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