Lancaster County's unemployment rate held steady at 6.7 percent in September, the state said Wednesday.

In matching the August figure, the local jobless rate ended a string of three consecutive monthly increases.

"You take your little victories where you can get them," said Bill Sholly, an analyst with the state Department of Labor & Industry.

That's a logical approach, since it's hard to imagine any big victories in the foreseeable future.

"I don't want to say the rate won't come down," Sholly said, "but I don't see anything to suggest any big, sudden drops."

In other words, get used to the jobless rate staying north of 6 percent — if you haven't already.

The rate hasn't been below that point since December 2008, a year into the recession, when it was 5.6 percent.

That 6-plus level has become the new normal here, roughly double the county's old normal.

In 2000-2002, the jobless rate was mostly in the 2 percent to 3 percent range.

But the county has plenty of company.

As the county's jobless rate has deteriorated, rates elsewhere have done the same.

So Lancaster County's rate still is among the best, as it was a decade ago, just higher.

The county's September jobless figure tied with Lebanon's for second best among Pennsylvania's 14 metropolitan areas.

State College had the lowest at 6.0 percent, while Scranton/Wilkes-Barre had the highest at 9.6 percent.

Lancaster County fared well when compared to the statewide and national rates, too.

They were 8.2 percent and 7.8 percent, respectively.

Locally, the September rate resulted from the county having 254,300 people working but 18,300 people without jobs.

Taking a closer look at the work force here, the various job categories had a mixed performance in September.

The leisure and hospitality category dropped 2,300 jobs in September from August, because of seasonal layoffs in the tourist industry.

That compared to the five-year average of 1,200 jobs lost, as some establishments reduced payrolls earlier than usual.

But that exceptionally large drop was offset in part by exceptionally large gains in some other categories.

For instance, local government (including public schools) gained 300 more jobs than its five-year average.

Education and health services added 200 more than its five-year average.

Transportation, warehousing and utilities added 100 more than its five-year average.

Despite the countywide jobless rate being unchanged in September, the rate dipped significantly in the county's three largest municipalities.

The rate fell in East Hempfield Township to 5.2 percent from August's 5.9 percent.

In Lancaster city, the rate slid to 9.3 percent from August's 9.7 percent.

And in Manheim Township, it declined to 6.2 percent in September from 6.5 percent the previous month.

Municipal rates are not seasonally adjusted to account for the predictable influence of seasonal events, such as the expansion of the retail sector in December and its contraction in January.

The countywide rate is adjusted for those swings.

tmekeel@lnpnews.com