REGION

REGION
Fruit farm will befeatured in tour
CANFIELD -- White House Fruit Farm in Canfield will be one of three farms the Ohio Department of Agriculture will feature in a press tour June 26 to highlight Ohio-grown foods. The tour is sponsored by the Ohio Vegetable and Potato Growers Association, the Ohio Grape Industries Committee and the state's OHIO PROUD program.
Unemploymentstats show drop
The unemployment rates in Mercer and Lawrence counties dropped from March to April, the last period for which statistics are available.
The jobless rate in Mercer County dropped from 5.9 percent to 5.2 percent in April. The decline isn't from more people working, however. There were 55,000 people employed in April but 55,200 working in March.
The main factor in the lower jobless rate is that fewer people were looking for work, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
In Lawrence County the jobless rate went from 8 percent in March to 6.6 percent in April. Lawrence County employers added 300 jobs to their payrolls in April, according to state officials.
The jobs came from seasonal gains in construction and leisure and hospitality businesses. State officials reported 40,500 people employed in Lawrence County in April compared with 40,200 in March.
From Vindicator staff reports