The Wisconsin State Department of Workforce Development announced Thursday the state’s unemployment rate in December was up 1.2 percent from the same time in 2007, increasing to 5.8 percent.

The nation’s unadjusted rate for December was 7.1 percent, up 0.6 percent from November, and up 2.3 percent from December 2007, according to a Department of Workforce Development press release.�

“The unemployment rate is considerably high,” State Labor Market economist Eric Grosso said. “Looking back historically, we haven’t seen unemployment rates this high for the month of December since 1986.”�

According to Grosso, while the rates are not the highest the state has ever seen, December rates are usually much lower.

Grosso also added while the rate increased in December, for most of the year the unemployment rate was fairly low compared to the rest of the nation, and it has only increased in the last two months.�

“We haven’t seen [state unemployment] rates increase to the same extent that national did the past couple of months,” Grosso said.

With the unemployment numbers on the rise, the tasks facing the Jobs, the Economy and Small Business Committee will likely be far more challenging than in previous years.

“The committee will have a lot of work on its hands to keep the economy working during these tough times,” Committee Chair Louis Molepske, D-Stevens Point, said. “We need to work on job training and retooling in areas where job loss is likely to happen.”�

Molepske added the committee passed two bills Thursday which will help increase state and national jobs by requiring various state government agencies to buy a set percentage of Wisconsin and American-made goods to be used in a variety of government capacities, including everything from paper to office equipment.�

“If we’re going to buy paper, we should buy it from Wisconsin, not from another country,” Molepske said.�

Committee member Rich Zipperer, R-Pewaukee, agreed the committee has lots of work to do during the upcoming session.�

“I think the numbers tell us that what has been business as usual isn’t working, and we need to take steps to improve our economy,” Zipperer said. “However, with runaway spending and taking more tax dollars out of the economy, I don’t think it comes as a surprise that our economy is in worse shape than it was two years ago.”�

Zipperer said he hopes, with the state’s economic situation becoming increasingly dire, bills which encourage employers to send employees to college, as well as small investment bills, will pass through the Legislature with bipartisan support in ways they haven’t in previous years.�

“We need to try and help folks who are bettering themselves through education and help them get jobs,” Zipperer said.

Presently, 179,600 Wisconsin residents are unemployed.