Unemployment rate stays the same for November

The jobless rate in Iowa held steady in November, despite a lagging economy. While the unemployment rate for November didn’t budge from the five-point-four percent rate tallied in October — Iowa Workforce Development analyst Ann Wagner says that doesn’t tell the whole story. Wagner says the rate is well above the two-point-six percent rate of a year ago. She says the state did manage to hold steady last month despite the national recession.Wagner says there’s been some mixed signals from the state’s economy as there’d been a steady decrease in manufacturing jobs the last several months, but says November saw a slight increase due to the settlement of labor dispute among Maytag workers. Wagner says December could hold the steady trend.Plants generally continue doing well as they fill holiday orders, and then slow down heading into January. The national unemployment rate rose in November from five-point-four to five-point-seven percent.