A larger workforce in Warren County in January wasn’t enough to overcome more people receiving jobless benefits, making for a second month of higher unemployment.

Jobless rates countywide and statewide were higher for the month. Warren’s was 8.1 percent, up from 7.7 percent in December, according to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security. Preliminary figures showed 20,100 people in the local labor force, up by 760, and 1,620 people receiving unemployment benefits, up by 140.

Statewide, unemployment was 7.8 percent, up from 7.1 percent in December. Adjusted for seasonal factors in the workplace, the state’s rate was 7.1 percent, down a tenth of a percent. MDES announced its data for January reflected new methods of calculating labor data, mainly residency and population information, and thus month-over-month comparisons were not available. Last month’s labor statistics for Warren County were gleaned from the archives of The Vicksburg Post.

Nationally, the unemployment rate was 5.7 percent, up a tenth of a point. Industry sectors that lost jobs in the state were trade, transportation and utilities; and leisure and hospitality, the agency said.

Claiborne, Sharkey and Issaquena counties also reported higher joblessness for the month. Claiborne’s was 15.2 percent, while Sharkey’s was 13.9 percent. Both were up 3.5 percent. Issaquena’s rate was 24.5 percent, highest in the state, due to 100 of its labor force of 410 being counted by the agency as being out of work.

The unemployment rate is calculated by a survey that asks how many people are looking for a job. A second survey each month asks employers how many people are on their payrolls, a measure many economists use as their top labor market indicator.