SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (STACKER) — While today’s unemployment rates are significantly lower than the COVID-19 pandemic peak of 14.7% experienced in April 2020, the fear of job losses remains as workers stare down an uncertain economic future.
Experts are mixed in their views of a potential recession. The return of student loan payments, continually high gas prices, persistent inflation, and insurance price escalations are just a few of the factors that could limit consumer spending and potentially prompt another recession. The last economic recession before the pandemic—the Great Recession of 2007-09—sent unemployment rates up to 10% as of October 2009, and a full recovery took years.
But as of August 2023, the national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 3.8%—nearly the same as the same month last year, and up about 0.3 percentage points from July. Regional and state employment varies widely depending on local economies. Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates by state demonstrate a rather sizable spectrum, ranging from just 1.7% in Maryland to 5.4% in Nevada.
Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in South Dakota using Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in August 2023, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
Canva
#50. Stanley County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,992 people (35 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#49. Clark County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,030 people (37 unemployed)
Patrick Ziegler // Shutterstock
#48. McCook County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: No change
– Total labor force: 3,227 people (57 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#47. Turner County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,933 people (89 unemployed)
Canva
#46. Codington County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 16,387 people (296 unemployed)
Steven Frame // Shutterstock
#45. Minnehaha County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 120,066 people (2,178 unemployed)
Canva
#44. Jones County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 569 people (11 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#43. Harding County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 741 people (14 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#42. Perkins County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,490 people (28 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#41. Gregory County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,121 people (40 unemployed)
Canva
#40. Kingsbury County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,767 people (52 unemployed)
Canva
#39. Butte County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,379 people (103 unemployed)
Canva
#38. Beadle County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,429 people (181 unemployed)
Canva
#37. Yankton County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 11,927 people (222 unemployed)
Canva
#36. Lawrence County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,705 people (276 unemployed)
Canva
#35. Meade County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 15,110 people (293 unemployed)
Canva
#34. Pennington County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 1.9%
— 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 62,218 people (1,202 unemployed)
Canva
#33. Campbell County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 767 people (15 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#32. Edmunds County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,021 people (41 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#31. Deuel County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,396 people (47 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#30. Spink County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,998 people (60 unemployed)
Canva
#29. Custer County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,385 people (86 unemployed)
Canva
#28. Lake County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,764 people (136 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#27. Brown County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 20,015 people (398 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#26. Hyde County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.1%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 661 people (14 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#25. Jerauld County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.1%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,198 people (25 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#24. Marshall County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.1%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,612 people (55 unemployed)
Canva
#22. Charles Mix County (tie)
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.1%
— 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,005 people (86 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#22. Moody County (tie)
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,099 people (86 unemployed)
Sabrina Janelle Gordon // Shutterstock
#21. Union County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.1%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,754 people (185 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#20. Faulk County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,112 people (25 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#19. Hanson County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,816 people (40 unemployed)
vagabond54 // Shutterstock
#18. Day County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,682 people (61 unemployed)
Canva
#17. Brookings County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 19,084 people (438 unemployed)
Canva
#16. Jackson County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,336 people (32 unemployed)
Canva
#15. Fall River County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,116 people (74 unemployed)
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#14. McPherson County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Up 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 989 people (25 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#13. Potter County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,099 people (28 unemployed)
Canva
#12. Lyman County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,761 people (44 unemployed)
Canva
#11. Clay County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,951 people (176 unemployed)
Canva
#10. Walworth County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,107 people (60 unemployed)
Canva
#9. Roberts County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.2%
— 1-month change: Up 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: No change
– Total labor force: 4,706 people (152 unemployed)
vagabond54 // Shutterstock
#8. Bennett County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
— 1-month change: Up 1.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,101 people (37 unemployed)
thierry dehove // Shutterstock
#7. Todd County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.1%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,085 people (127 unemployed)
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#6. Corson County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
— 1-month change: Up 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,279 people (57 unemployed)
Canva
#5. Mellette County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 784 people (37 unemployed)
Canva
#4. Buffalo County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
— 1-month change: Up 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.9 percentage points
– Total labor force: 704 people (34 unemployed)
davidrh // Shutterstock
#3. Ziebach County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
– Total labor force: 983 people (57 unemployed)
Canva
#2. Oglala Lakota County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.6%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,045 people (308 unemployed)
Canva
#1. Dewey County
– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,413 people (231 unemployed)
This story features data reporting by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
