COLUMBUS, Ohio — After months of declining unemployment, Ohio’s unemployment rate rose to 5.2% in June, which was .2 percentage points higher than May, the state announced on Friday.

According to Job and Family Services statistics, 13,000 additional Ohio workers were unemployed in June compared to May.

Ohio’s unemployment rate was 4.7% in April.

The U.S. unemployment rate rose in June from the previous month, increasing .1 percentage point to 5.9%. June was the first month in over a year the U.S. had a rise in unemployment, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Although Ohio unemployment rose in June, the state's workforce expanded. 

Ohio’s workforce increased to 60.2% after declining to 59.9% in May. The only other time Ohio's workforce participation rate has dropped below 60% since the 1970s was April 2020 during the height of coronavirus shutdowns, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The leisure and hospitality industry, which had previously seen significant declines in workforce participation, added more than 10,000 workers in Ohio in June, according to the state. 

While the United States’ workforce participation has held relatively steady this year, Ohio has decreased in participation.

In hopes of encouraging more Ohioans to leave unemployment and return to work, Gov. Mike DeWine ended $300-a-week unemployment subsidies on June 26. Ohio also resumed requiring those on unemployment to actively seek employment on May 23.

The declining workforce has forced companies to alter operations. For instance, Cedar Point closed on some weekdays in June and has started offering $20 an hour for employees.