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On September 20th, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) announced the preliminary August 2023 unemployment rates for Wisconsin’s 72 counties and the 35 cities with populations greater than 25,000 residents. St. Croix County’s August rate was estimated at 3.8%, which is higher than July’s final rate of 3.2% and June’s final rate of 3.5%. One year ago, the county’s unemployment rate was estimated at 3.0%.

DWD said preliminary unemployment rates from July to August decreased in one county and rose in 71 counties. Year-over-year, rates decreased or stayed the same in five of 72 counties. Current rates range from 2.7% in Door to 11.2% in Menominee.

Preliminary unemployment rates from July to August increased in all of Wisconsin’s 35 largest cities. Year-over-year, rates rose in all 35 cities. Rates ranged from 3.0% in Fitchburg to 5.5% in Beloit, Milwaukee, and Racine.

The five counties with the lowest unemployment rates in August include Door (2.7%), Lafayette (also at 2.7%), Pepin (also at 2.7%), Dane (3.0%), and Green (also at 3.0%). Menominee had the highest rate in August at 11.2%, followed by Iron (5.4%), Adams (5.1%), Forest (5.0%), and Milwaukee (4.7%).

St. Croix, Pierce, and Polk counties comprise Wisconsin’s Greater St. Croix Valley. In addition to St. Croix’s rate of 3.8%, August’s preliminary rate for Polk was 3.7% and 4.0% for Pierce.

St. Croix and Pierce counties are included in the 15-county Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI metro area. The August 2023 unemployment rate for the Twin Cities was estimated at 3.2%, which is the same as July’s final rate but lower than June’s final rate of 3.3%. The unemployment rate for the Twin Cities was 2.7% in August 2022.

Nearby Washington County in Minnesota reported a preliminary rate of 3.0% in August, while Dakota County, MN reported a rate of 3.1% and Chisago County, MN had a rate of 3.5%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate for Wisconsin in August was estimated at 2.9%, which is higher than July’s final rate of 2.6% and June’s final rate of 2.5%. One year ago, the state’s seasonally adjusted rate was 3.1%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate for Minnesota in August was estimated at 3.1%, which is higher than July’s final rate of 3.0% and June’s final rate of 2.9%. Minnesota’s seasonally-adjusted rate one year ago was 2.7%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in the U.S. for August was estimated at 3.8%, which is higher than July’s final rate of 3.5% and June’s final rate of 3.6%. One year ago, the U.S. rate (seasonally adjusted) was estimated at 3.7%.

Wisconsin’s preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for August was estimated at 65.7%, which is higher than July’s final rate of 65.5% and June’s final rate of 65.3%. One year ago, Wisconsin’s labor force participation rate was 64.8%. The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for the U.S. in August was estimated at 62.8%, which is higher than the final rate of 62.6% for both July and June. One year ago, the labor force participation rate in the U.S. was 62.3%.

August’s estimates are preliminary and are subject to revision within the next few weeks.