Latest Tenn. jobless rate unchanged: 10.7 percent

NASHVILLE, Tenn.

Tennessee's unemployment rate for January was 10.7 percent, unchanged from December.

Labor Commissioner James Neeley said Thursday there was a 3,400-job increase in employment, and two of the three largest gains were in manufacturing.

The January rate a year ago was 9.1 percent. The national unemployment rate for this January was 9.7 percent, down from 10 percent in December.

"I've talked to an awful lot of businesses, and right now they're just wary," Gov. Phil Bredesen told reporters after a speech in Columbia. "It's been such a tough 18 months.

"They're kind of saying, 'I can see things coming back, but I'm going to be real careful about making the commitment that it takes to add a lot of staff,'" he said.

According to the Business Survey, 200 job gains in the state occurred in plastic and rubber products manufacturing; 200 in fabricated metal products manufacturing; and 200 in federal government.

Major employment decreases occurred in trade, transportation and utilities, down by 18,100; leisure and hospitality, 11,100 jobs; and professional and business services, 9,900.