At 10 percent, the January unemployment rate for Washington Parish is more than two points higher than the previous month but down slightly from the same period last year.

According to not seasonally adjusted figures released Monday by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1,570 people, or 10 percent of the parish labor force, were unemployed in January. The number of people employed was 13,651.

In December, 1,165 people, or 7.8 percent, were out of work. In January 2012, the unemployment rate was 10.3, with 1,553 people unemployed in the parish.

Statewide, there was a 1.1-percent decrease in unemployment over the year and a 0.3-percent increase from the previous month. Seasonally adjusted figures had Louisiana’s unemployment rate at 5.9 percent for January, down from the 7 percent of January 2012. However, the jobless rate rose slightly from the revised December rate, 5.6 percent.

The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Louisiana was 7.2 percent in January, 5.5 percent in December and 7.6 percent last January.

In January, Louisiana’s civilian labor force, which includes people who are working and those who are unemployed but looking for a job, was 2,093,527. That is an increase of 12,353 from January 2012 and the largest force since November 2005. The number of employed in January was 1,969,264, up 32,955 from the same time last year. In January, 124,263 Louisianans were unemployed, a decrease of 20,602 over the year.

“The growth of our labor force and the high number of people who are working are indicators our economy is continuing to grow,” LWC Executive Director Curt Eysink said.

The national unemployment rate was up from the previous month and down slightly over the year. Based on not seasonally adjusted figures, unemployment was at 8.5 percent in January and 7.6 percent in December. In January 2012, the jobless rate was 8.8 percent.