MacIver News Service | November 24, 2010
[Madison, Wisc...] Wisconsin again ended last month with more people working in government than in the manufacturing sector.
The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development’s monthly report for October 2010 indicated that, in seasonally-adjusted terms, 435,100 individuals worked for local, state and federal government, while there were 434,700 manufacturing jobs in Wisconsin. Non adjusted numbers reflect an even larger gap with 431,100 government jobs and 426,700 employed in manufacturing.
Wisconsin’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged from the previous months 7.8 percent.
In a release issued today, Department of Workforce Development Secretary Roberta Gassman put a positive spin on the state’s employment situation.
“Compared to a year ago, unemployment rates are down in every metro area, nearly every major city and all but five counties,” Secretary Gassman said. “We are encouraged by signs of recovery, but we have more work to do to help job seekers across the state find employment.”
DWD noted that fourteen of Wisconsin’s 72 counties had lower rates than September and another 18 had no change.
What the release didn’t highlight, but an accompanying chart indicated, that means 40 counties saw a jump in the unemployment rate from the previous month.
