Trending News

On October 23rd, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) announced the preliminary September 2019 unemployment rates for Wisconsin’s 72 counties and the 33 cities with populations greater than 25,000 residents. St. Croix County’s rate was estimated at 2.7%. For comparison, St. Croix’s final rate in August was 2.9% and July’s final rate was 3.0%. One year ago, the county’s unemployment rate was estimated at 2.3%.

DWD said preliminary unemployment rates from August to September declined or remained the same. The rates ranged from 2.1% in Lafayette to 9.3% in Menominee.

September’s 2019 preliminary unemployment rates declined or stayed the same in Wisconsin’s 33 largest municipalities from August to September. Rates ranged from 2.2% in La Crosse to 5.0% in Racine.

The five counties with the lowest unemployment rate in September include Lafayette (2.1%), Iowa (2.2%), Dane (2.3%), Green (2.4%), and La Crosse, Monroe, Sauk, Sheboygan, and Taylor (all at 2.4%). Menominee County had the highest rate in September at 9.3%, followed by Iron (4.8%), Marinette (4.1%), Forest (4.0%), Rusk (3.9%).

St. Croix, Pierce, Polk, and Dunn counties comprise Wisconsin’s Greater St. Croix Valley. In addition to St. Croix’s rate of 2.7%, September’s preliminary rate in Pierce was at 2.5%, followed by Dunn at 2.7%, and Polk at 2.8%.

St. Croix and Pierce counties are included in the 15-county Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI metro area. The September 2019 unemployment rate for the Twin Cities was estimated at 2.4%, which is lower than August’s final rate of 2.9% and July’s final rate of 3.1%. The unemployment rate in the Twin Cities was 2.2% in September 2018.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate for Wisconsin in September was estimated 3.1%, which is higher than August’s final rate of 3.1% and July’s final rate of 3.0%. One year ago, the state’s seasonally adjusted rate was 3.0%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in Minnesota in September was estimated at 3.2 %, which is lower than August’s final rate of 3.3% and July’s final rate of 3.4%. Minnesota’s seasonally-adjusted rate one year ago was 2.8%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in the U.S. for September was estimated at 3.5%, which is lower than the final rate of 3.7% for both August and July. One year ago, the U.S. rate (seasonally adjusted) was estimated at 3.7%.

Wisconsin’s preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for September was estimated at 67.2%, which is the same as the final rates for August and July. One year ago, Wisconsin’s labor force participation rate was 67.6%. The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for the U.S. in September was estimated at 63.2%, which is the same as August’s final rate and higher than July’s final rate of 63.0%. One year ago, the labor force participation rate in the U.S. was 62.7%.

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