County reclaims lowest unemployment rate

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
Weston County once again has the lowest unemployment rate in the state for March, according to the April 19 report from the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services Research and Planning Division.  
“Weston County had the lowest unemployment rate in March at 4.1%. It was followed by Teton County at 4.2% and Niobrara and Goshen counties, both at 4.3%,” the report states. “The highest unemployment rates were found in Natrona County at 7.9%, Sublette County at 7.7%, and Sweetwater County at 7.1%.” 
For February, Weston County had the second-lowest unemployment rate in the state at 4.7%, slightly above Albany County’s 4.6%. In March, despite having a 4.4% unemployment rate, Albany County dropped to the fifth-lowest rate in the state. 
“From February to March, unemployment rates followed their normal seasonal pattern and fell in every county,” the report says. “Jobless rates decrease in March as warmer weather brings seasonal job gains in construction, leisure & hospitality, government and other sectors.” 
Year over year, Weston County joined 16 other counties in the state that experienced a decrease in the unemployment rate when comparing 2020 to 2021. The county saw a 0.3% decrease year over year, while other counties, including Washakie, Sublette and Big Horn, saw decreases ranging from 1.5% to 1.7%. 
On the other hand, six counties experienced increases year over year including Natrona, up from 6.1% to 7.9%; Converse, up from 4.7% to 6.3%; and Campbell, up from 5.6% to 6.6%. 
Statewide, the unemployment rate remained the same in February and March at 5.3%, seasonally adjusted. Year over year the state’s unemployment rate increased from 5.1% in March of 2020 to 5.3% in March of 2021. 
Seasonal adjustments, according to the report, are a statistical procedure to remove the impact of normal regularly reoccurring events such as weather, major holidays and the opening and closing of schools. This is removed from the economic time series to better understand changes in economic conditions from month to month. 
“Wyoming’s unemployment rate has remained within the narrow range of 5.1% to 5.4% in each of the past six months and is considerably lower than the current U.S. rate of 6%,” the report states. 
Nationwide, unemployment is up 1.6% from March of 2020 to March of 2021, with the COVID-19 pandemic playing a significant role in the increase.