St. Mary Parish’s unemployment rate ticked upward to 8.4 percent in August, according to the latest figures from the Louisiana Workforce Commission. The jobless rate here — the percentage of people in the workforce who are seeking jobs but can’t find them — was up from July’s 8.3 percent figure, but down significantly from the 10.1 percent rate in August 2016. Statewide, total private-sector employment grew by more than 27,000 jobs in the year ending in August. “Our state’s job market has undoubtedly made progress in the last 12 months, with the addition of jobs to the local economy and marked declines ...