VEC manager: Local joblessness holds steady

The longtime manager of the Culpeper Virginia Employment Commission office maintained a positive attitude Friday when asked about the forecast for local joblessness.

“I would say it is holding steady,” VEC manager Peter Mocarski said of unemployment figures. “I have been optimistic over a long period of time because the economy is a cyclical thing,” he added drawing on his 25 years of experience with the VEC.

The most recent unemployment figures for workers who live in Culpeper, in fact, showed a slight drop from the previous month — from 5.5 percent joblessness in August to 5.1 percent in September.

Last year’s unemployment rate in Culpeper was 3.6 percent.

The unemployment rate in the region — Culpeper, Fauquier, Orange, Madison and Rappahannock counties — for September was 4.1 percent up from 2.9 percent last year.

Mocarski attributed the slight month-to-month drop in Culpeper’s unemployment figures to a seasonal shift in the workforce, mostly due to college students returning to school.

With a shift in presidency soon to come, he added, a general sense of economic optimism should prevail, hopefully stamping out “an awful lot of doom and gloom out there” being perpetuated by the national media.

At the same time, Mocarski recognized grim economic realities facing the country, mentioning the potential loss of 50,000-plus jobs at a top national bank and challenges facing the U.S. auto industry.

“You kind of look around here and things are interrelated,” he said, mentioning a slowdown at local car dealerships.

“It’s not just in Detroit. The American Big Three are right out there on (U.S.) 29 across the road from each other.”

Even though financing to buy a new car might be available, Mocarski added, people hesitate to commit themselves because of the economic uncertainty.

One thing is for certain, job opportunities in the region are few and far between — just take a look at the local classifieds.

September’s 5.1 percent unemployment rate for Culpeper equates to 1,046 individuals collecting unemployment benefits, Mocarski said.

Region-wide, there are 3,550 people receiving weekly unemployment checks.

And then there are the people who aren’t covered by the state’s unemployment benefits, he said, because their employer is not required to pay into the system.

These people include the self-employed, obviously, agricultural workers or people who work for nonprofits, Mocarski said.

So while latest figures may be showing 5.1 percent unemployment it’s likely higher.

The local office does not have a firm grip on which local industries are laying off, he added, since many unemployed people now file their claims over the phone or Internet compared to the way it used to be done — in person in the office.

Mocarski said he had not heard of any pending layoffs or closures in the immediate area.

The maximum time someone can collect state unemployment is 26 weeks. However, an extended benefit program that went into affect in July prolongs benefits by another 13 weeks, a program that has seen substantial interest in Culpeper, Mocarski said.

The federal government’s announcement Friday that it would extend federal unemployment benefits through the holidays should trickle down to the local level by mid-December, he said.

Local industries that recently saw some level of layoffs include Builder’s First Source, Structural Systems, Merillat and Luck Stone.

Allison Brophy Champion can be reached at 825-0771 ext. 101 or .