Available Employment Characteristics and Trends

unemployment and a massive increase in people within the Armed Forces. Due to the proximity to several military facilities, this increase is not unfounded.

TABLE X: TOTAL POPULATION IN AND OUT OF THE LABOR FORCE AND ARMED FORCES

Total Population ages 16 + Total Labor Force 2010 2019 % Change 13,047 18,870 45% 9,445 13,367 42%

Employed Unemployed

8,562 12,544 47% 818 488 -40% Armed Forces 65 335 415% Participation Rate 72.4% 70.8% Population NOT in the Labor Force 3,602 5,503 53% Following the aftermath of the 2008 recession, Hanahan’s unemployment rate peaked in 2012 at 10.5%.In comparison, Berkeley County and South Carolina’s unemployment rate peaked the following year in 2013 at 11.9% and 11.4% respectively. Since then, as seen in Figure X, Hanahan’s unemployment rate has been in a steady decline. As of 2019, the unemployment rate was estimated at 3.7%. The steady decline has led Hanahan, in 2019, to have the second lowest unemployment rate, only behind Moncks Corner (2.4%). This is well below the Berkeley County (5.0%) and South Carolina (5.8%) unemployment rates in 2019. FIGURE X: CHANGE IN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE BETWEEN 2010 AND 2019 8.7% Available Employment Characteristics and Trends

9.9%

10.5% 9.8% 6.9% 5.4% 4.9% 4.3% 3.9% 3.7% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019NOV PC DRAFT By focusing on the characteristics of the people participating in the Labor Force, additional trends can be observed that further identify any areas of improvement. The age groups with the highest employment rate are naturally between the age range of 20 and 59, which accounts for over twothirds of Hanahan’s labor force. As seen in Figure X, there is a large spike in employment in the young adult age groups while a steady decline in the years close to and after retirement age. This is a typical trend, however, as young adults are staying in college longer, the percent of 20- to 24year-olds in the labor force could decline in coming decades.