LAKE COUNTY — February saw county, state and national unemployment rates change by 0.1 percentage points, according to preliminary data released by the California Employment Development Department.
Lake County”s rate decreased by that amount in February, coming in at 16.5 percent.
The comparable rates, not seasonally adjusted, for California and the United States were 11.4 percent (a slight increase) and 8.7 percent (a slight decrease), respectively.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calculated the seasonally adjusted national unemployment rate as 8.3 percent.
Lake County improved its statewide ranking for the third consecutive month, moving up one spot to 42nd out of 58 California counties.
Wage and salary employment in the county increased by 160 jobs between January and February and remained up 410 jobs compared to February 2011, when joblessness was 18.5 percent.
Rates for neighboring counties included Mendocino at 11.1 percent, Napa at 8.9 percent and Sonoma at 9.3 percent.
Marin County again posted the lowest rate in the state with 6.6 percent while Colusa County remained highest at 27.1 percent.
