
By MICHAEL CRIMMINS
Glasgow News 1
Barren County is in lockstep with the rest of Kentucky, which had unemployment rates increase in all of its 120 counties.
Barren County had an unemployment rate of 5.6 percent in December 2024 compared to the 4.1 percent reported for December 2023, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics. The county’s 5.6 percent is 0.6 points higher than the Barren River region’s average of 5 percent and 0.5 points higher than Kentucky’s average of 5.2 percent.
The center reported that there were 17,950 people in the current labor force, which is 71 less than was reported in November 2024, and 1,008 listed as unemployed, which is 73 people more than in November. According to the release, unemployment figures do not include Kentuckians who have not sought employment within the past four weeks.
Woodford County recorded the lowest jobless rate in the commonwealth at 3.8 percent and Martin County recorded the state’s highest unemployment rate at 12.4 percent.
Kentucky’s county unemployment rates and employment levels are not seasonally adjusted because of small sample sizes.
“Employment statistics undergo sharp fluctuations due to seasonal events such as weather changes, harvests, holidays, and school openings and closings,” the release states. “Seasonal adjustments eliminate these influences and make it easier to observe statistical trends.”
The United States comparable rate was 3.8 percent.