The total number of nonfarm jobs in Wisconsin finally surpassed pre-COVID levels for the first time in February and the state’s unemployment rate reached a record low, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Wisconsin’s unemployment rate in February was 2.7%, down two-tenths from January and surpassing the previous record low of 2.8%.
However, the record level has come as the state’s labor force participation rate has trended down over the past year. When the rate was last at a record low in early 2022, the participate rate was 65.4%. It is now almost a full point lower at 64.5%.
When the unemployment rate was 2.9% in 2018, the labor force participate rate was more than 3 percentage points higher at 67.6%.
The participation rate is expected to continue declining as aging Baby Boomers retire and leave the workforce. A declining participation rate helps the unemployment rate, which is calculated by using the number of people officially calcified as unemployed, not by using the total number of people without a job.
Still, the state's low unemployment rate is a sign of a tight labor market and is lower than the national rate of 3.6%. The national rate also ticked up two-tenths from January to February.
Total payrolls in Wisconsin also saw improvement in February with nonfarm jobs in the state up 7,500 and private sector employment up 4,000.
Retail trade led the state's job gains in February, adding 1,800 positions. Leisure and hospitality also added 1,400 and education and health services added 1,100 jobs. Nondurable goods manufacturing also added 1,200 jobs, but overall manufacturing employment was up 500 as the durable goods sector lost jobs.
Government employment in Wisconsin was up 3,500, pushing total nonfarm employment past its February 2020 level.
Total private sector employment in the state surpassed its pre-COVID level in September 2022, according to revised U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
While nonfarm payrolls in some states surpassed February 2020 as of late 2020 or early 2021, there are still 17 states and the District of Columbia yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. Wisconsin was the 34
th state to reach it’s February 2020 total.
