High unemployment rates still plague North Carolina and the rest of the country, but Principal at South-by-North Strategies John Quinterno says people shouldn’t get too hung up on these numbers.

According to data by the Employment Security Commission, North Carolina posted double-digit rates of unemployment in 64 counties and 24 of those counties had rates of at least 12 percent.  All 14 of the state’s metropolitan areas struggled in August with the Hickory-Morganton-Lenoir area having the highest unemployment rate at 14.6 percent.  However, the Durham-Chapel Hill area had the lowest rate with only eight percent.

August was the first month since October 2008 in which North Carolina employers created more positions than they eliminated.  Quinterno says most of these jobs were in the public sector, whereas the private sector still struggled tremendously.  He says this type of increase can be attributed to the seasonal changes of employment such as people becoming employed again when schools started back up.

Quinterno says those looking for a quick fix or a quick end to these economic struggles will not find this anytime soon.

According to the South-by-North News release, since the onset of the recession, North Carolina has lost, on net, 253,400 payroll jobs.