The Mercer County unemployment rate at 5.1 percent. The June number released yesterday by the Illinois Department of Employment Security and represents a five-point improvement from the same period a year ago. The unemployment rate also decreased from year over year levels in Henderson, Warren, Knox, Henry and Rock Island Counties mainly due to employment gains in the Educational-Health Services and Construction sectors. Statewide, the unemployment rate is 5.0 percent with the national unemployment rate at 4.5 percent. The highest unemployment rate in the region is 6.6 percent in Fulton County.