Unemployment rate jumps in Kimball County

Unemployment in Kimball County saw a slight jump in February, while unemployment in Banner County saw a slight decrease.

Recently released unemployment numbers from the Nebraska Department of Labor showed that Kimball County’s unemployment rate increased from 2.8 percent in January to 3 percent in February. Numbers showed that there were 2,190 people employed in Kimball County in February with 68 unemployed. In January, there were 2,191 employed and 62 unemployed.

The unemployment rate in Banner County improved from 5.2 percent in January to 5 percent in February. There were 415 people employed and 22 unemployed in February, with 417 employed and 23 unemployed in January.

Nearby Cheyenne County also saw a slight improvement from January to February, with unemployment there improving from 2 to 1.9 percent.

The 11-county Panhandle Economic Region also saw a slight improvement, from 3.1 percent unemployment in January to 2.8 percent in February. Those numbers showed 45,028 employed and 1,277 unemployed in February, compared to 44,681 employed and 1,448 unemployed in January. The region includes Banner, Box Butte, Cheyenne, Dawes, Deuel, Garden, Kimball, Morrill, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan and Sioux counties.

Statewide, Nebraska had a 2.9 percent unemployment rate in February, and improvement from the 3.3 percent unemployment rate in January.