WY Unemployment Rate Rises for Third Consecutive Month

The Wyoming unemployment rate went up again in August, making it the third consecutive month with an increase in joblessness.  Wyoming’s unemployment increased from 5.6% to 5.7% in August. Senior Economist with the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, David Bullard, says it’s not totally clear what’s responsible for the slight loss of jobs, but the slowdown of the energy sector is likely contributing.  Bullard says Wyoming is still doing better than most other states.

"Unemployment is down considerably from a year, it’s significantly lower than the national unemployment rate, and then if we compare ourselves with other states, we have the 7th lowest unemployment rate of all 50 states. Although we saw some slight weakening in the economy over the summer months, we’re still better off than most places."  

Fifteen other states saw an uptick in joblessness during the summer months. The national unemployment rate is 8.1%, down slightly from June and July.