Last week, state figures showed unemployment up in every county in Tennessee. In Perry County it soared to 14.8% – the highest in the state. Residents almost couldn’t bear to hear the news.
“People are complaining, they’re frustrated, they can’t figure out why we can’t get anything in here.”
That’s Teresa Garrison. She owns the B&H Dairy Bar, a local lunchtime hangout. She says the crowds started dwindling last year when Fisher Manufacturing, an automotive supplier, announced it would move its operations to Mexico. The plant once employed 700 people. By September, it’ll close completely.
To keep the Dairy Bar’s doors open, Garrison says she’s cutting back where she can.
“One of the things we done, we tinted the windows trying to help on the electric bill. Now, we’re not having to run all four air conditioners, we’re just running three. I’ve turned my coke machine around where they can get their drinks themselves so I’ve cut back on a waitress up front. You know, it’s just a constant juggle trying to figure out what to do.”
Infrastructure is a key. In Perry County, there’s no four lane road, making it difficult to entice large companies to locate there.
Two counties to the west, Williamson, has the state’s lowest unemployment rate at 4.8%.
Economic Development Director Matt Largen says the kind of companies his county courts also makes a difference.
“The primary reason that we’ve been able to weather this economic downturn more effectively is the fact that our manufacturing sector is about a third of what it is nationally. We still see significant growth in the office sector, particularly with headquarters, healthcare and high tech.”
The manufacturing sector in Tennessee has been hit the hardest, down 8,600 jobs since last June.
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