LUMBERTON — Data obtained by the Robesonian shows that the percentage of health care jobs in Robeson County dropped very slightly during the first part of 2024.

Still, the Health Care sector remained the largest employer in the County, followed by Manufacturing, Retail Trade, Educational Services and the Hotels and Restaurant sectors.

During the past year, little has changed in the mix of job producing industries. However, the percentage of jobs in Retail Trade has increased slightly, a signal that could mean residents are spending more — at least enough to support the demand for Retail Trade sector jobs, according to the most recent data from the North Carolina Department of Commerce.

Once considered a manufacturing hub, Robeson County has seen a decline in the percentage of jobs in that sector in recent years. In fact, not since 2020 has the Manufacturing Sector provided the highest percentage of jobs in the county.

Additionally, while jobs in other sectors increased slightly, manufacturing jobs have held relatively steady at about 7,000 throughout the county for the past few years, according to the Commerce Department data.

In other local economic news Robeson County’s unemployment rate inches up slightly in the past month, climbing from 4.6% in October to 5% in November and up from 4.7% a year ago.

Unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) increased in 85 counties in November 2024, decreased in 12, and remained unchanged in three. Mitchell County had the highest unemployment rate at 8.9% while Orange and Currituck Counties each had the lowest at 2.9%. Fourteen of the state’s metro areas experienced rate increases and one decreased. Among the metro areas, Asheville had the highest rate at 6.1 percent while Wilmington had the lowest at 3.0 percent. The not seasonally adjusted statewide rate was 3.7 percent.