Ohio unemployment rate remains at 7 pct.

COLUMBUS (AP) — The latest monthly jobs data shows Ohio’s unemployment rate continuing to stay below the national figure.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said today the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for February was 7 percent, unchanged from January.

Family services spokesman Ben Johnson says economists would hope to see the labor force growing more than it has at this point in a recovery, but adds the good news is the total number of unemployed is significantly down from a year ago.

The state’s leaders have said Ohio’s economy and its job market are getting stronger, though the process is slow.

Ohio’s unemployment rate has remained about a percentage point below the U.S. rate, which was 7.7 percent in February.