Jobless rate goes up slightly

The unemployment rate in Flathead County climbed slightly in February to 13.3 percent.

That was barely above January’s 13.2 percent, but marked the sixth straight month of rising unemployment in Flathead County.

February’s 13.3 percent was the highest monthly unemployment rate the state has registered for Flathead County since record-keeping began in 1990.

Lincoln County’s jobless rate reached 18 percent in February, up from 17.8 percent the previous month.

In Lake County, the unemployment rate rose from 11.3 to 11.4 percent from January to February.

Employment numbers for individual counties are not adjusted for seasonal fluctuations in the work force.

The seasonally adjusted jobless figure for Montana shows a rise in February to 6.9 percent from 6.8 percent in January.

Casting aside seasonal adjustments, the statewide unemployment rate was 8 percent.