Ohio jobless rate holds at 8.6 percent

Ohio jobless rate holds at 8.6 percent

COLUMBUS

A long, steady decline in Ohio unemployment paused in May, but state officials said Friday the job market continued to improve and outperform those in other states despite the unchanged jobless rate.

Ohio registered 8.6 percent unemployment in May, matching the rate from April, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said. The rate was stuck in place after a 14-month string of declines, a post-recession streak that officials had said was the longest of its kind since Ohio unemployment fell for 19-straight months in 1983 and ’84.

The number of workers unemployed in Ohio dipped to 508,000 in May, from 509,000 the previous month. Payrolls outside of farms grew by 12,000, officials said. The biggest hiring gains were seen in education and health services and professional and business services. Government was the big loser.

For the second month in a row, Ohio had a lower unemployment rate than the national one, which was 9.1 percent in May, up from 9 percent in April.

Leaders to tour treatment plant

WARREN

State lawmakers and elected leaders will tour Patriot Water Treatment LLC, 2840 Sferra Drive, on Monday.

The officials will learn more about the cleaning process used with water from natural-gas drilling.

Sens. Capri Cafaro of Liberty, D-32nd, and Joe Schiavoni of Canfield, D-33rd, will join other state representatives, Warren Mayor Mike O’Brien and Warren Mayor-elect Doug Franklin at the event.

New business filings

COLUMBUS

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted reported Friday that 7,440 new entities filed to do business in May, an increase of 758 compared with last May.

In the first five months in 2011, the secretary of state’s office has helped with 37,612 new business filings. Last year, 34,632 new businesses filed in the months January through May.

32 Texans accused of defrauding AFLAC

MCALLEN, Texas

Federal authorities have arrested 32 south Texas residents in what they describe as a wide-ranging fraud scheme that bilked insurer AFLAC out of $3 million over a decade.

The 32 — including a police officer, teachers and county employees — are accused of making fraudulent minor-injury claims.

A Justice Department statement Friday said they bought accident insurance and, with the help of two Mexican doctors, filed minor- injury claims thought too small to draw suspicion. In return, the border-city doctors received small kickbacks.

Prosecutors say the 32 submitted about 21,600 fraudulent claims between July 2001 and April 2010.

If convicted, each could face up to 20 years in prison for each count of conspiracy and wire fraud. Some indictments remain partially sealed, so more arrests are possible.

Staff/wire reports