(The Center Square) – Wisconsin and other states did not receive October unemployment numbers due to the federal government shutdown but the state’s November numbers show that Wisconsin remains well below the national average on unemployment.
Wisconsin’s unemployment rate was 3.1%, the same as it was one year before.
The state’s labor force participation rate went from 66.0% in November 2024 to 64.1% in November 2025. The U.S. labor force participation rate remained at 62.5% in both Novembers.
Locally, the numbers were also similar year over year as five of the state’s 13 metropolitan statistical areas had the exact same unemployment rate year over year while four went up by 0.1 percentage points, three went down 0.1 percentage points and the Fond du Lac area dropped from 2.6% to 2.4%.
Fitchburg’s 2.1% unemployment rate is the lowest of the state’s among Wisconsin’s 35 largest cities while Madison is at 2.2%, Muskego is at 2.3% and De Pere, Eau Claire, Neenah, New Berlin and West Bend sat at 2.4% using numbers that are not seasonally adjusted.
Green County had the lowest unemployment rate of Wisconsin’s 72 counties, followed by Calumet, Dane, Dodge, Iowa and Lafayette counties at 2.2% along with Kewaunee, Marathon, Monroe and Outagamie at 2.3%.
