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After three months of decreasing unemployment, Washington County’s unemployment rate went up last month according to data released from the Iowa Workforce Development.  Washington County has just under 12,000 people in the workforce.  Washington County’s unemployment rate increased to 5.2% up seven-tenths of a percent from May.

Unemployment rates averaged a half of a percent higher in all of southeast Iowa.  The lowest increase was in neighboring Iowa County while both Johnson and Louisa County’s unemployment rate went up by eight-tenths of a percent.

When compared to the last year’s figures, southeast Iowa’s unemployment rate is an average of one-third of a percent lower.