It Figures

4.6%

Nebraska’s unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.6 percent in January, still less than half the national rate of 9.7 percent, according to state officials. The preliminary December rate of 4.7 percent reported on Jan. 22 was revised to 4.6 percent. The January rate was a half-point higher than the 4.1 percent reported a year ago, the Nebraska Department of Labor said. Two sectors of the state economy added jobs in January. The education and health services sector added 5,479 jobs, and the other services – repair and maintenance sector added 113 jobs, the report said. Nebraska’s seasonally adjusted labor force included 983,427 people in January. Of those, 45,361 were listed as unemployed, which is 607 lower than in December and 4,560 higher than January 2009. AP

18

An 18-count indictment was returned by a federal grand jury in Illinois against three defendants who are alleged to have submitted false claims of more than $1 million to workers’ compensation and other insurers for non-rendered services or inflated claims. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois, those charged were Darwin Minnis, a chiropractor in West Chicago; Dr. Jacob Salomon, a physician who worked at Minnis’ chiropractic clinic; and Gary Strauss, who worked in billing and claims processing at Minnis’ clinic. Most of the patients at the clinic — the Spine and Joint Rehabilitation Center — were U.S. Postal Service employees who were eligible for benefits under the U.S. Labor Department’s Office of Workers’ Compensation. The indictment alleges that the defendants and others intentionally submitted false or inflated claims and information to the federal workers’ comp office on behalf of the clinic and patients.

46%

New vehicle registrations in Wisconsin have dropped 46 percent since 2000, and thousands of jobs have disappeared as auto plants and suppliers deal with the fractured auto industry. The auto statistics service Cross-Sell shows the number of new vehicles registered in Wisconsin in 2009 was nearly 172,000, down from nearly 320,000 in 2000. Since 2000, 107 auto dealerships have closed in Wisconsin, including 56 in 2008 and 2009. Employment in auto parts manufacturing fell 44 percent from 2000 to 2009. AP

Topics USA Auto Workers' Compensation Wisconsin