HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The latest unemployment numbers released by the Kansas Department of Labor show a very slight increase for Hutchinson with a rate in July of 4.3 percent, up from the June number when the rate was 4.2. However, this is a lower number when compared to June of last year when the rate was 4.7 percent.

The rate for Reno County last month was 4.1 percent, which is also an increase over June when the rate was 3.9, but still a little lower when compared to July of 2017 when the rate was 4.6 percent.

There were 1,229 residents listed as looking for work last month with 825 of those in the city of Hutchinson.

Other area counties also saw slight increases last month, but there were no major changes.

For the state of Kansas, preliminary estimates show a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 3.4 percent in July. This was unchanged from June and down from 3.6 percent in July 2017.