Jay Co. rate goes up to 4%

For the third month in a row, the unemployment rate went up.

According to estimates Indiana Department of Workforce Development released Wednesday, Jay County’s unemployment rate went up by 0.4 percentage points in July.

The county’s rate came in at 4%, which was tied for the 39th-lowest rate in the state in comparison to the other 91 counties. It was down 0.7 percentage points from the same month last year.

The unemployment rate in Jay County has gone up by a total of 1.3 percentage points over a three-month period. It had dropped to 2.7% in April after coming in at 4.1% in February.

Increases in unemployment rates were the story throughout the region, as adjacent counties saw jumps from 0.3 percentage points to Delaware County’s high of 0.7 percentage points. The Delaware County rate of 5% was sixth-highest in the state while Wells County came in tied for third-lowest at 3.3%.

Indiana’s rate increased by half a percentage point from June, coming in at 4.2%. It was still down by 0.8 percentage points from the same month in 2024.

Union County continued its run of low unemployment, posting the state’s lowest rate at 3.1% in July. Martin County followed at 3.2%, with Wells, Pulaski and Boone counties next at 3.3%.

Howard County again had by far the highest unemployment rate in Indiana at 6.9%. Lake County was next at 5.4%.

Area unemployment rates are as follows:

Adams County: 4%, up 0.4 percentage point, tied for 39th-lowest

Blackford County: 4.7%, up 0.5 percentage points, tied for 11th-highest

Delaware County: 5%, up 0.7 percentage points, sixth-highest

Jay County: 4%, up 0.4 percentage points, tied for 39th-lowest

Randolph County: 4.2%, up 0.4 percentage points, tied for 28th-highest

Wells County: 3.3%, up 0.3 percentage points, tied for third-lowest