As for the other sectors damaged by the recession locally, Dufrene said continued declines in building permits has impacted construction employment. With businesses and consumers purchasing less, there isn't a great demand for transportation, warehousing and shipping services, he added.
Leisure and hospitality losses also reflect the overall downturn in consumer spending, Dufrene said.
"As households continue to save more and spend less, they are forced to cut back on discretionary items like going out to eat or other forms of entertainment," he said.
Under House Enrolled Act 1379, several changes to the Indiana unemployment insurance system went into effect Wednesday.
Claimants must now submit one job application per week and must accept any offer of suitable work that pays 90 percent of their previous wage during weeks five through eight of receiving unemployment benefits.
After eight weeks, the claimant must accept work that pays at least 80 percent of their previous wage.
Now when vouchers are filed, the filer must submit one application per week and look for work at two other places in order to remain eligible for benefits, according to a news release from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.
Previously, claimants only had to perform three work searches a week.
Another U.S. Labor study released Thursday showed the unemployment rate for workers with an associate degree rose to 8 percent in June, nearly double the rate from the same time last year.
The jobless rate for those with a bachelor's degree or higher dropped slightly from May to 4.7 percent, but it too was still nearly double the mark of last June.
The unemployment rate for those with less than a high school diploma was 15.5 percent for June.
Dufrene said the reports are troubling and feels the federal stimulus package hasn't done enough to boost employment nationwide. He explained that the economic problems are due in large part to the retrenching customer and that the solution is getting consumer confidence back.
"That could have been done with a significant boost to personal income, such as a tax holiday, or anything to place more money in the pockets of consumers," Dufrene said.
"That would have provided a tremendous stimulus to industries that are hurting the most, such as manufacturing and retail. To be sure, the current stimulus package has had an impact, but I don't think the [President Barack Obama] administration could be satisfied with the current results."
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