The Research & Planning section of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services reported today that the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell from 3.7% in November to 3.3% in December. Wyoming’s unemployment rate has been trending downward for several months and is much lower than its December 2020 level of 5.2%. Seasonally adjusted employment of Wyoming residents rose by 913 individuals (0.3%) from November to December as more people went back to work.
Most county unemployment rates changed very little from November to December. Teton County was the exception. Its unemployment rate fell from 2.8% to 1.6% as the ski season got into full swing.
From December 2020 to December 2021, jobless rates fell in every county. These decreases represent a return to more normal levels after the pandemic caused unemployment rates to be unusually high in December 2020. The largest decreases occurred in key energy producing counties. Natrona County’s unemployment rate fell from 7.3% to 3.1%, Sweetwater County’s rate fell from 6.8% to 2.9%, Sublette County’s rate fell from 6.7% to 2.9%, and Converse County’s rate fell from 6.0% to 2.4%.
In December, the highest unemployment rates were found in Natrona County at 3.1%, Sublette County at 2.9%, and Sweetwater County at 2.9%. Teton County reported the lowest unemployment rate at 1.6%. It was followed by Weston County at 1.7% and Albany, Crook, Goshen, and Niobrara counties, each at 1.8%.
Total nonfarm employment in Wyoming (not seasonally adjusted and measured by place of work) rose from 271,000 in December 2020 to 275,100 in December 2021, an increase of 4,100 jobs (1.5%). Employment was unusually low in December 2020 because of economic disruptions related to the pandemic.
Research & Planning has scheduled the January unemployment news release for March 7, 2022.