GALLIPOLIS — Unemployment in Meigs County declined slightly in November while the jobless rate for Gallia County remained unchanged, the Ohio Department of Jobs and Families Services reported.

County-by-county jobless data for last month was announced by DJFS on Tuesday, also showing slight declines in surrounding counties.

Meigs dropped one-tenth of a percent to 10 percent for November, placing it among four other counties — Huron, Noble, Ottawa and Van Wert — with rates at 10 percent or above. Van Wert County had the highest jobless rate for the month at 10.9 percent.

Gallia County’s 6.3 percent unemployment rate remained the same in November, DJFS reported.

The rate increased in only one area county, Washington, which was 5.5 percent in November. Its October rate was 5.4 percent.

Otherwise, declines were seen in Athens County at 6.2 percent, down six-tenths of a percent from October’s 6.8 percent; Jackson County at 7.9 percent, also down six-tenths of a percent from 8.5 percent in October; Lawrence County at 5.5 percent, down two-tenths of a percent from 5.7 percent in October; and Vinton County at 9.8 percent, down two-tenths of a percent from October’s 10 percent reading.

The state says hiring in the service sector helped to keep Ohio’s unemployment rate at 7.3 percent last month, unchanged from October.

The figures released last Friday show that the number of unemployed workers in November was 435,000, even with the October figures. The number of unemployed has increased by 95,000 in the past 12 months.

November’s 7.3 percent joblessness in Ohio was up from 5.7 percent a year ago and tops the national rate of 6.7 percent.

DJFS says job losses continued in Ohio’s labor market during November. The unemployment rate held steady as gains in service-providing jobs were offset by larger losses in goods-producing jobs.

(The Associated Press contributed to this story.)