County unemployment increased in May

May’s unemployment rate in St. Joseph County increased by more than half a percent from April.

Figures from the monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget show St. Joseph County’s unemployment rate rose from 5 percent in April to 5.7 percent in May. The county’s May rate from a year earlier was 4.7 percent.

Meanwhile, Cass County experienced an identical increase in its unemployment from April to May. Its April rate was also 5 percent and increased to 5.7 percent a month later.

Branch County also experienced a jump in its monthly rate. It was 4.5 percent in April and 5 percent in May.

Michigan’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May was 5.4 percent, a drop of one-tenth of a percent from its rate in April.