Monroe County's unemployment rate fell slightly for the month of December, dropping from the 15.8 percent revised rate in November, down to 15.7, according to the latest figures from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

The state figures show 2,930 people out of the county's 18,690-person workforce were unemployed during December.
During the summer, Monroe County's jobless rate soared to 18.6, and the county ranked in the worst five counties for unemployment for several months.
However, now Monroe County is no longer in the bottom 10 counties in Tennessee when it comes to unemployment.

Sea Ray Boats said it has called back about 55 workers at its Vonore plant since the first of the year, which means the jobless numbers could improve a bit more when the report for January comes out.
Monroe County Economic Development Director Shane Burris said he is pleased to hear Sea Ray's good news, which continues a recent trend of job callbacks at big Vonore plants.
McMinn County reported a 13.1 percent jobless rate while Loudon County's unemployment rate came in at 9.7 percent

Tennessee's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December was 10.9 percent, up 0.7 percentage points from the revised November rate of 10.2 percent. The United States' unemployment rate for the month of December was unchanged at 10 percent.

County non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rates for December 2009, released Thursday show that the rate increased in 91 counties, decreased in one, and remained the same in three counties.
Lincoln County registered the state's lowest county unemployment rate at 7.1 percent, up 0.4 percentage points from its November rate.  Lauderdale and Marshall counties had the state's highest unemployment rate at 18.9 percent.  Lauderdale was up 0.4 percentage points from the November rate, and Marshall County increased from 16.8 percent in November.

Knox County had the state's lowest major metropolitan rate of 8.1 percent, up 0.4 percentage points from the November rate. Hamilton County was at 8.9 percent, up 0.5 percentage points from the November rate.  Davidson County was 9.2 percent, up 0.4 percentage points from the previous month, and Shelby County was 10.3 percent, up 0.3 percentage points from the November rate.

NOTE: Information will be available on the Internet; enter www.tennessee.gov/labor-wfd/labor_figures/december2009county.pdf ;