STILL SLUMPING: There was more bad economic...

STILL SLUMPING: There was more bad economic news for the county last month: Almost 20,000 people filed initial claims for unemployment insurance in January (D1), up from 11,000 in January, 1991. And last month’s claims were up more than 3,000 from December as retailers laid off all their holiday help. . . . In addition to shop clerks, many of January’s jobless probably continue to be “people in construction, engineering types from computer-related and defense companies,” state labor analyst Eleanor Jordan says.