LIHU‘E — The unemployment rate for Kaua‘i held steady in February at 9.1 percent, according to recently released statistics from the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations.
The unemployment rate has hovered around 9 percent for more than a year, reaching a low of 8.6 percent in November 2009 and a high of 10.5 percent in June 2009, according to Hawai‘i Workforce Informer. During 2008, the rate started at 3 percent in January and escalated to 7.7 percent by December.
“The current unemployment rate of 9.1 percent is quite high by historical Kaua‘i standards,” said WorkWise Kaua‘i Manager Bill Grier, Wednesday, while he was in the process of settling into the job center’s new location next to Lihu‘e Big Save. “Based on little more than intuition, I suspect that it will remain around 9 percent for at least the next month or two.”
Businesses seem to be holding as steady as the unemployment rate as far as retaining employees is concerned, said Kaua‘i Chamber of Commerce President Randy Francisco, who has recently paid visits to enterprises from the Westside to Kapa‘a.
“The majority are keeping people employed,” he said Wednesday.
And while they “don’t see themselves hiring” in the near future, there is a possibility of increasing hours for some employees, such as those working within the “visitor attraction” arena, which are reportedly “doing better,” he said.
“They’re looking forward to what summer will bring,” he said regarding business owners on Kaua‘i.
Still, the island’s unemployment is considerably higher than the state’s average of 6.7 percent.
“During more robust economic times the Neighbor Islands often enjoyed lower unemployment rates than the State of Hawai‘i average,” Grier said. “I suspect that the lack of diversity in the economies of the Neighbor Islands contributes to the ‘boom or bust’ cycles.”
WorkWise will hold its grand opening at 2 p.m. today in the old “fishbowl” next to Lihu‘e Big Save.
Visit www.workwisekauai.com for more information.
• Coco Zickos, business and environmental writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) or czickos@kauaipubco.com.
