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Melodine Thompson, recently laid off by Sara Lee, spent much of Tuesday looking for new employment.

The rise in St. Joseph’s unemployment rate looks small to someone reading a chart.

For the crowd at the Missouri Career Center, it feels like a steep climb.

The local unemployment rate rose to 4.7 percent in May, up from 4.1 percent in April, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. St. Joseph’s mark remains lower than the Missouri average of 5.7 percent and trails both Kansas City and St. Louis, yet such numbers offer little consolation to people like Melodine Thompson.

Ms. Thompson lost her job at Sara Lee in June — the victim of “corporate downsizing” after almost two years with the company. To make matters worse, the car she was driving was struck by an ambulance in mid-June. Put the two together, and Ms. Thompson finds herself in a precarious financial position.

“I need something with $14 an hour to start or I lose my house, I lose my car, I lose my dogs, I lose my life,” Ms. Thompson said.

Immediately after she lost her job, Ms. Thompson went online and searched for a new one. Anything within 25 miles of St. Joseph would do, but no openings were found. If her trip to the Missouri Career Center doesn’t pan out, her alternative is to move in with a relative in Colorado and seek work in one of the nearby resort towns. A resort might offer better pay, but Ms. Thompson prefers the life she has in St. Joseph.

Ms. Thompson said the economy hasn’t done her many favors either. Prices for fuel and food rise almost daily with no end in sight.

“It’s impossible, but I’ve got to find something,” she said.

Ms. Thompson’s situation could grow more common in upcoming weeks. Progressive Molded Products filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year and confirmed last week that the nearly 190 workers at its local plant soon would lose their jobs, although work continued Tuesday.

For PMP, which operates multiple plants in the United States and Canada, the financial problems were a result of the global economy and not a reflection of the local business climate, according to Brad Lau, senior vice president of economic development for the St. Joseph Area Chamber of Commerce. Just a few months ago, the company asked the chamber for help to recruit more workers, Mr. Lau said.

More jobs may be on the way to St. Joseph, for those who can wait. Work continues to prepare the land at Eastowne Business Park along Riverside Road, and PMP’s facility in Mitchell Woods Business Park could eventually be an attractive site for another company.

“With Mitchell Woods, the streets weren’t even in when the first building was being built,” Mr. Lau said. “If someone wants to come in and bring new jobs, we’re going to find ways to help them.”

Business reporter Clinton Thomas can be reached at clintonthomas@npgco.com.