Horry County’s unemployment rate rivals the Great Depression. What can be done to help?
Horry County’s unemployment rate is at an unprecedented high — rivaling that of the national Great Depression rate — as South Carolina leaders gather to discuss how to restart the South Carolina economy.
Currently, the unemployment rate in Horry County is above 20 percent as the tourism economy remains closed due to restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of coronavirus, according to calculations using publicly available data.
An unemployment rate is calculated by dividing the number of people out of work by the total people able to have a job.
The labor pool in Horry County is about 149,000 people, according to the Myrtle Beach Regional Economic Development Corporation. There have been just over 40,000 unemployment claims filed since the start of the pandemic, according to data from the Department of Employment and Workforce on Thursday.
This makes the current unemployment rate roughly 25 percent in the county. As unemployment numbers continue to change, so will the rate.
“We’ve had rapid unemployment. By our best count, we are at a 25 percent unemployment rate in Horry County,” Horry County’s Assistant Administrator Barry Spivey said last week to the county council.
That makes the current unemployment rate higher than the local 15 percent unemployment rate during the Great Recession and around the same as the 25 percent national unemployment rate during the Great Depression, but not as bad as the near 37 percent unemployment rate for nonfarm workers in the 1930s.
While the pandemic is ongoing and more people seek unemployment benefits, AccelerateSC is holding its initial talks to jump-start the economy.
County Council Member Tyler Servant and North Myrtle Beach Mayor Marilyn Hatley were placed on Gov. Henry McMaster’s AccelerateSC committee to discuss reopening South Carolina. McMaster has said he favors a gradual approach to re-opening.
“This committee cares deeply about the State of South Carolina and making sure we get up and running as quickly and safely as possible. Hopefully ending with businesses getting back open and people back to work,” Servant said.
Horry County’s economy is primarily supported by the tourism and service industry that has been severely impacted by social distancing measures closing hotels and limiting restaurant service.
The local economy is also seasonal with a significant increase in employment during the summer and a gradual dropping off during the fall. Tourist season is typically when unemployment is the lowest in the area.
Servant said tourism in Horry County makes up 30 percent of South Carolina’s accommodation tax revenue and is a major employer for the state. He hopes to stress the importance of tourism to the committee and help represent young, working families in the recovery effort.
During the Horry County budget retreat, Spivey said the current economic downturn is expected to be worse than the one that followed 9/11 or the Great Recession.
Spivey cited the high unemployment rate as a key reason, but stressed this could be a short-term recession depending on what happens in the future. County staff proposed a $51 million spending decrease to account for the pandemic’s impact on the local economy.
Seventeen percent of Horry County’s general fund budget comes from fees and fines like the accommodations tax on lodging, gambling boat fees, permit fees and other charges on services in the unincorporated area. The better the economy, generally, the more money the fees can bring in.
Rep. Tom Rice, R-7, who represents Horry County in the United States Congress, said he is hopeful that the coronavirus spread curve has been slowed and he believes it’s time to thoughtfully reopen low-risk businesses. He said the area was doing great with low unemployment before the pandemic, and he said we need to get back on a successful track.
The problem is deeper than government restriction, Rice said. He believes people would still be cautious about visiting hotels or large tourist attractions even without bans.
“This was going to damage tourism regardless. The fact this virus exists was going to affect tourism,” Rice said. “When people lift these guidelines are people going to be running back?”
It will be a gradual process to get people visiting and supporting the tourism industry, Rice believes. He hopes to see more federal support for the industry and those who work in it.
There are some signs of economic improvement. The state announced Thursday that the amount of new people seeking unemployment benefits has decreased last week for the first time since the pandemic began.
Rice believes South Carolina will be in a good position over time and return to the 2 percent unemployment rate it enjoyed before the pandemic. He has faith in the governor and president to help ease the country back into a strong economy.
“I want to do everything I can to bring us back to the level of opportunity we enjoyed before this virus,” Rice said.
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 3:21 PM.
