Unemployment Rate in West Bend 13.9%

Yikes.

The jobless rate in West Bend started the year higher than the previous month, according to statistics released Wednesday by the state Department of Workforce Development.

   The city’s January unemployment rate was 13.9 percent, up 1.5 percent from December.

   In 2009, the city’s jobless rate topped out at 14.6 percent in June after starting the year at its lowest point, 10.5 percent in January.

   In Washington County, the January 2010 jobless rate was 9.6 percent, up 1 percent from December, but lower than the 2009 high mark — June’s 10.1 percent. Washington County has the 46th highest unemployment rate from among Wisconsin’s 72 counties. The jobless rate is highest in Rusk County, at 14.3 percent, and lowest in Dane County, at 6.3 percent.