Trending News

On October 26th, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) announced the preliminary September 2022 unemployment rates for Wisconsin’s 72 counties and the 35 cities with populations greater than 25,000 residents. St. Croix County’s September rate was estimated at 2.9%, which is the same as the final rates for both August and July. One year ago, the county’s unemployment rate was estimated at 2.6%.

DWD said preliminary unemployment rates from August to September declined or stayed the same in 57 of the 72 counties. Rates declined or stayed the same in 12 of the 72 counties year-over-year. The current rates range from 2.5% in Dane to 5.9% in Menominee.

Preliminary unemployment rates from August to September decreased or stayed the same in 25 of Wisconsin’s 35 largest cities. Year-over-year, the rates declined or stayed the same in 13 cities. Rates ranged from 2.4% in Sun Prairie to 4.9% in Beloit.

The five counties with the lowest unemployment rates in September include Dane (2.5%), Calumet (2.6%), Clark (also at 2.6%), Iowa (also at 2.6%), and Lafayette (also at 2.6%). Menominee had the highest rate in September at 5.9%, followed by Iron (5.1%), Forest (5.0%), Adams (4.7%), and Milwaukee (4.3%).

St. Croix, Pierce, and Polk counties comprise Wisconsin’s Greater St. Croix Valley. In addition to St. Croix’s rate of 2.9%, September’s preliminary rate in Pierce was 3.0% and Polk’s rate was 3.2%.

St. Croix and Pierce counties are included in the 15-county Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI metro area. The September 2022 unemployment rate for the Twin Cities was estimated at 2.1%, which is higher than July’s final rate of 2.0% but lower than June’s final rate of 2.2%. The unemployment rate in the Twin Cities was 3.2% in September 2021.

Nearby Washington County in Minnesota reported a preliminary rate of 1.6% for September, while Dakota reported a rate of 1.7% and Chisago had a rate of 1.9%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate for Wisconsin in September was estimated at3.2%, which is higher than the final rate of 3.1% for August and July’s final rate of 3.0%. One year ago, the state’s seasonally adjusted rate was 3.4%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in Minnesota for September was estimated at 2.0%, which is higher than August’s final rate of 1.9% and July’s final rate of 1.8%. Minnesota’s seasonally-adjusted rate one year ago was 3.2%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in the U.S. for September was estimated at 3.5%, which is lower than August’s final rate of 3.7% but the same as July’s final rate of 3.5%. One year ago, the U.S. rate (seasonally adjusted) was estimated at 4.8%.

Wisconsin’s preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for September was estimated at 65.6%, which is lower than August’s final rate of 65.9% and July’s final rate of 66.2%. One year ago, Wisconsin’s labor force participation rate was 66.5%. The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for the U.S. in September was estimated at 62.3%, which is lower than the final rate of 62.4% but higher than July’s final rate of 62.1%. One year ago, the labor force participation rate in the U.S. was 61.6%.

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