Wisconsin unemployment rate ticked down in March

MADISON — New preliminary data shows Wisconsin's unemployment rate dropped slightly in March.


The state Department of Workforce Development released a report Thursday that put the unemployment rate last month at 4.5 percent, down from 4.6 percent in February.

The national unemployment rate was 5 percent in March, up from 4.9 percent in February.

The report found the state added 11,500 nonfarm jobs in March. The private sector gained 13,100 jobs but the government sector lost 1,600 jobs across the federal, state and local levels.