Montana’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 5.7 percent in December, a rate the state hasn’t seen in nearly four years.
Meanwhile, Flathead County’s non-seasonally adjusted rate ticked up to 9.1 percent in December from 9 percent in November. The current rate is still 1.5 percentage points lower than the same month a year prior.
Northwest Montana continues to have some of the highest jobless rates in the state, with Lincoln County leading the way at 14.8 percent, followed by Sanders County at 14.1 percent.
The state’s unemployment rate has been on a downward trend since mid-2011, when it was at 7 percent. The national unemployment rate held steady at 7.8 percent in December.
Labor Commissioner Pam Bucy says Montana is starting 2013 with a strong economy that has been adding jobs and gaining wages for two years. She says she expects the state to continue to have a lower unemployment rate than the national average.
Montana’s total employment increased by 201 jobs in December to 510,078. The total employment was an increase of over 7,000 jobs compared to December 2011.
The last time Montana’s unemployment rate was 5.7 percent was April 2009.
Here are the jobless rates for every Montana county.
Flathead unemployment rates by month:
December 2012: 9.1%
November 2012: 9%
October 2012: 8.3%
September 2012: 7.4%
August 2012: 7.9%
July 2012: 7.9%
June 2012: 8.5%
May 2012: 9.2%
April 2012: 10%
March 2012: 10.7%
February 2012: 10.7%
January 2012: 11.5%
December 2011: 10.6%