Wisconsin unemployment drops to 3.2% for August

Jon Styf Thu, September 17, 2026 at 8:01 PM UTC

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The Wisconsin State Capitol stands at sunset with surrounding city buildings and lakes in the background in Madison. Photo: Josh Sorenson / Unsplash

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s unemployment rate dropped to 3.2% in August numbers released on Thursday, remaining below the 4.1% national average.

The state saw an increase of 11,800 nonfarm wage and salary jobs from a month before, something Department of Workforce Development Chief Economist Scott Hodek said was marked as a “statistically significant movement” in the labor force.

The state’s labor force participation rate rose to 64.7% in August, above the 61.6% national average.

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Hodek said that “despite a relatively slow national economy” the Wisconsin numbers were relatively positive in the state for a second consecutive month.

Wisconsin has seen an increase of 10,500 construction jobs year over year while the state now has 7,500 less retail trade jobs than a year ago and 11,300 less in trade overall from a year ago.

Hodek said that the “underlying main challenge of the labor market remains demographic” with an aging labor force in the state and a projected decrease in population in coming years, calling it a “deeply impactful long-term trend.”

Wisconsin has 3,057,300 nonfarm jobs in August.

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Source: “AOL Money”