Metropolitan areas, large cities also see decrease
By Jalen Maki
Tomahawk Leader Editor
LINCOLN COUNTY – Unemployment rates in all 72 of Wisconsin’s counties declined from April 2021 to May 2021 and from May 2020 to May 2021, according to data released by the Department of Workforce Development (DWD) on Wednesday, June 23.
The state’s 12 metropolitan areas also saw a decline in unemployment rates in that time frame. Wisconsin’s 34 largest cities each saw a decrease over the last year, while all but one saw a decrease over the last month. Oshkosh’s 3.7% unemployment rate did not change from April 2021 to May 2021.
County data
According to the data, Menominee County had the highest unemployment rate in Wisconsin last month at 8.4%, followed by Forest (7.2%), Iron (6.3%), Adams (6.1%) and Milwaukee (5.8%) counties.
Lafayette County’s 2.6% unemployment rate was the state’s lowest in May 2021, followed by Kewaunee (2.7%), Pepin (2.8%), Taylor (2.8%), and Calumet (2.9%) counties.
Lincoln County fell roughly in the middle of the pack with a 3.6% unemployment rate last month. The county’s unemployment rate was 4.2% in April 2021 and 8.9% in May 2020.
Marathon County’s 3.1% unemployment rate last month was among the lowest in the area. Oneida and Price counties had rates of 4.2% and 4.6%, respectively, while Vilas County’s unemployment rate in May 2021 was 4.7%.
All of the counties’ unemployment rates are lower than they were in May 2020, when many exceeded 10% and some neared 20%. Menominee’s unemployment rate of 29.9% was the highest at that time.
Last year’s high unemployment figures have been attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.