Here's how unemployment in Harvey County, Kansas compares

Harvey County's unemployment rate in December was 4.2%—ranked #1 highest out of 105 in the state.

Nationally, unemployment has leveled with pre-COVID rates, measuring between 3.5% and 4% for most of the past two years. Bureau of Labor Statistics data showed a 3.7% unemployment rate in January. Previously, unemployment skyrocketed to 14.7% at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020, and those rates remained elevated through late 2021.

Though national unemployment has mostly normalized, local economies vary widely. Stacker used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to analyze unemployment in Harvey County over time, and how it stacks up within Kansas and across the nation.

The unemployment rate in Harvey County is 0.5 percentage points above the national level, and 1.4 percentage points above the state level. It ranks #1 among counties in Kansas—ranked first by the preliminary December 2023 unemployment rate, then breaking ties by the number of unemployed people. It has the highest unemployment in the state, followed by Marion County (3.0%).

In real terms, it means an estimated 726 of Harvey County's approximately 17,331 working residents are out of a job at the moment. That's 338 more than last month and 330 more than a year ago. Some economists fret another recession may be on the horizon, which would drive unemployment up with business closures and layoffs.

This story was produced using automation across 3,100 counties, boroughs, and parishes, based on writing and data reporting by Paxtyn Merten.