SWEETWATER COUNTY — For the first time in months, Sweetwater County’s unemployment rate rose in the month of June to 7.1 percent compared to 6.7 percent in May.

According to the Research & Planning section of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, Sweetwater County again claimed one of the highest unemployment rates in the state. Only Natrona County was higher at 7.4 percent.

On a statewide level, Wyoming’s unemployment rate remained unchanged from May to June at 5.4 percent. Throughout the past nine months, the state’s unemployment rate has stayed between 5.1 and 5.4 percent.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused unemployment rates to be unusually high in June 2020, but in 2021 unemployment rates seem to be approaching more typical levels as the economy recovers. The largest decreases across the state occurred in Teton (down from 8.3 percent to 3.9 percent), Natrona (down from 10.3 percent to 7.4 percent), Campbell (down from 9.4 percent to 6.8 percent), and Sweetwater (down from 9.3 percent to 7.1 percent) counties.

The July unemployment report will be released on August 23, 2021.