Unemployment rates across the seven-county region improved marginally in February but remain nearly a whole percentage point higher than they did a year ago. Carroll County again led the way for the area with February’s unemployment rate at 2.7 percent, 0.1 points higher than in January and 0.8 points higher than in February 2024. Audubon County followed at 3.3 percent, even with the previous month but also 0.8 points higher than a year ago. Calhoun County saw a slight improvement, dropping from 3.5 percent in January to 3.4 percent in February. However, Calhoun County shows the most significant annual shift, with rates 1.3 points higher than last year. Greene County saw rates increase by 0.2 points to 3.5 percent, which is 1.2 points higher than February 2024. Sac County held steady at 3.9 percent, 1.2 points higher than last year. Guthrie County saw modest improvements, dropping to 4.4 percent from 4.6 percent in January. Crawford County again recorded the highest unemployment rate at 5.6 percent in February, 0.4 points below the prior month but still 0.1 points higher than a year ago. Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for February held at 3.3 percent, while the national rate rose to 4.1 percent. Across the region, February’s unemployment rate averaged 3.8 percent. A link to the full Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) dataset is included below.
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