Continuing the Crook County News Since 1884

County tops state statistics for employment rates

n a month when unemployment rates fell across the state, Crook County was in the top three Wyoming counties in terms of employment rates.

With just 2% unemployment during the month of September, Crook fell just behind Teton County’s 1.8% and matched Weston County, which also had a 2% unemployment rate.

Unemployment rates decreased in every one of Wyoming’s counties in September, according to the Department of Workforce Services (DWS). This is unsurprising, considering that unemployment rates were higher than usual in September, 2020, due to the pandemic.

The department’s data on unemployment insurance claims reflects this improvement in Crook County. During the week ending October 23, nine people were making continued claims, compared to 34 at the same time in 2020 – a drop of 73.5%.

Meanwhile, ten employers made unemployment insurance claims, compared to 33 a year ago. This is a decrease of 69.7%.

Overall, the DWS reports that seasonally adjusted unemployment has fallen across Wyoming from 4.9% in August to 4.5% in September, having trended downward for the last three months. Wyoming’s unemployment rate also remains lower than the average across the nation, which is currently 4.8%.

Seasonally, unemployment rates usually drop during August and September, sometimes due to schools and colleges recruiting for the start of the year. This year, one of the biggest decreases was in Campbell County, from 4.6% to 3.4%; Sweetwater and Natrona also saw significant drops.

Campbell County also saw one of the largest over-the-year decreases, which the DWS notes were highest in energy-producing parts of the state. Campbell County’s rate fell from 7.5% to 3.4%, while Converse, Natrona and Sweetwater also saw large drops.

The number of jobs in Wyoming has increased over the year, from 275,700 in September, 2020 to 277,600 last month, a 0.7% growth.

 
 
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