The Triangle's jobless rate was unchanged at 8.4 percent in August, suggesting that while the worst of the recession is easing, employers aren't rushing to hire new workers any time soon.

The latest data were released Friday by the N.C. Employment Security Commission and adjusted for seasonal effects by Wells Fargo Securities economists in Charlotte.

The News&Observer uses the adjusted data to provide a more statistically valid measure of local unemployment. The state jobless rate, which fell slightly to 10.8 percent in August, is seasonally adjusted by the Employment Security Commission.

"These numbers show that the unemployment rate appears to be topping out around the state, but the recovery is likely to be very slow," said Mark Vitner, senior economist with Wells Fargo.

For those looking for a job, here's the bad news: finding a job isn't getting much easier.

The state's unemployment rate stayed level in July, remaining at 11.0 percent.

Overall, the number of unemployed workers did drop by 4,853 people, but that was not a large enough decrease to change the state's overall unemployment rate.

Moreover, non-farm payrolls, which in June showed the first increase since September, fell again in July by 26,400 jobs.

"We continue to feel the effects of a struggling global and national economy," said N.C. Employment Security Commission chairman Moses Carey Jr.

Nationally, the unemployment rate decreased slightly from 9.5 percent in June to 9.4 percent in July.