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COLUMBUS, OH -- Unemployment in Lucas County fell to 9.3  in April according to Ohio Job and Family Services. It fell from 10 percent to 9.7 percent in the city of Toledo from March to April.

The 9.3 percent rate in Lucas County is a .4 percent drop from 9.7 percent in March and 11.6 percent in April 2010. For Toledo, the fall to 9.7 percent was a .3 percent reduction from the 9.7 percent unemployment the city experienced in March. Rates have fallen 2.3 percent since April 2010's rate of 12 percent.

The overall unemployment rate for Ohio was 8.6 percent, down from 8.9 percent in March and down from 10.3 percent in April 2010. The national unemployment average is nine percent.

The employment picture improved across the region with drops in unemployment in Fulton, Henry, Wood, Hancock, Sandusky, Seneca, and Ottawa counties.

The largest reduction in unemployment occurred in Ottawa County which saw its unemployment rate fall from 16.2 percent in March to 12.6 percent in April. It is also down from one year ago when the unemployment rate in Ottawa County was 13.7 percent.

For three consecutive months, Ottawa County maintained the highest unemployment rate in the state. It has since fallen off of the top of that list, with Pike County in southern Ohio now leading the state with 14.5 percent. The lowest unemployment rate occurred in Mercer County in eastern Ohio where unemployment stood at 5.8 percent.

Do you think the drop in unemployment in the region corresponds to the creation of new jobs, or frustration by job seekers who are dropping out of the job market?