Marengo County’s unemployment rose slightly by .2 percent from July to August, according to numbers released Friday.

Marengo’s jobless rate now stands at 8.2 percent, up from 8 percent in July. August’s numbers represent 627 county residents out of work.

Statewide, unemployment went up to 6.3 percent from 6.2 percent in August. This is well below August 2012′s rate of 7.5 percent.

“Alabama’s August unemployment rate doesn’t really show much change over the month,” said Alabama Department of Labor Commissioner Tom Surtees. “While we saw a slight increase in jobs, we didn’t really see much change in the number of people who remain unemployed. Getting these people back to work continues to be our top priority.”

Wage and salary employment, or the measure of the number of jobs in the economy, increased 3,400 in August, with gains in the professional and business services sector, the educational and health services sector, and the government sector.

“Although the numbers indicate that fewer people are actively looking for jobs this month, this is somewhat expected at this time of year,” continued Surtees. “It is not uncommon for the labor force to decline in August, as students leave the labor market to go to school, and those in the education field return to work. We are encouraged by the fact that nearly 20,000 more people are working this August than were last August.”

Counties with the lowest unemployment were Shelby at 4.5 percent, Lee at 5.5 percent, and Cullman and Baldwin at 5.6 percent.

Counties with the highest unemployment were Wilcox at 16 percent, Dallas at 14.1 percent and Perry at 14 percent.