Harvey County Unemployment Dips to 3.5% in September
Job market shows improvement across Newton area as hiring picks up heading into fall
NEWTON, Kan. — Harvey County's unemployment rate fell to 3.5% in September, down from 4.1% in August, according to data released by the Kansas Department of Labor.
The county's jobless rate now sits below both the state average of 3.6% and the Wichita metropolitan area rate of 3.8%. Of Harvey County's 18,094-person workforce, 17,466 people were employed in September, with 628 actively seeking work. The improvement mirrors a year-over-year comparison, as the county's unemployment rate stood at 3.6% in September 2024. Across the broader Wichita metro area, which includes Harvey, Butler, Sedgwick and Sumner counties, unemployment also declined from 4.5% in August to 3.8% in September. The four-county region recorded 13,192 unemployed workers out of a total labor force of 343,472 people.
Statewide, Kansas maintained a 3.6% unemployment rate in September, though that figure represents an improvement from August's 4.3% rate. The state recorded 57,196 unemployed workers out of a civilian labor force of more than 1.5 million people. National unemployment data was not included in the state labor report, but the Kansas figures suggest continued stability in local job markets as the economy heads into the final quarter of the year.
Due to the lapse in federal funding during the federal government shutdown, all Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) operations were suspended from Oct. 1, 2025, through Nov. 12, 2025. As a result, KDOL will not publish a separate report for the October 2025 Kansas Labor Report. Establishment survey data from the Current Employment Statistics program for October 2025 will be published with the November 2025 data. Household survey data from the Current Population Survey, which serve as the primary input to the Local Area Unemployment Statistics models, were not collected for the October 2025 reference period due to a lapse in appropriations and will not be collected retroactively.
The November 2025 Kansas Labor Report will be released January 7, 2026. The release schedule for December 2025 has not yet been finalized. We will communicate the date when it becomes available.
Found a mistake? Have a news tip or feedback to share? Contact our newsroom using the button below: