This past month, Iowa’s state unemployment rate finally dipped under five percent for the first time since 2008. Jasper County contributed to the statewide trend with a sizeable decrease in unemployment over the course of the last fiscal year.

It was announced Friday that Jasper County’s unemployment rate for November of 2012 checked in at 5.9 percent. While this shows a slight increase from October’s 5.7 percent, the unemployment rate within Jasper County has improved by 1.1 percent since November of 2011.

Jasper County’s unemployment rate still ranks the county toward the top of the list in terms of those without jobs in Iowa, but with rates peaking at 8.9 percent last February, the county’s job market has considerably improved during the latter half of 2012.