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Idaho’s May Unemployment Rate Falls to Historic Low of 2.5%

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 17, 2022
Media Contacts: Karen.JarboeSingletary@labor.idaho.gov or Salvador.Vazquez@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 2.5% in May, down from April’s rate of 2.6%. May’s rate marks the fourth consecutive month of historic lows since record keeping began in 1976.

Idaho map-county unemployment rates May 20223=The number of Idahoans employed or looking for work grew by 6,373 people (0.7%) to 943,390. Labor force participation increased by 0.3 percentage points between April and May to 62.4%. Idaho’s peak participation rate reached 71.4% in September 1998.

Total employment grew from April by 6,823 (0.7%) to 919,785 while total unemployment dropped by 450 (-1.9%) to 23,605.

According to Help Wanted Online, there were 63,998 online job postings in Idaho during May, or 2.7 job openings for every unemployed Idahoan looking for work.

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in June 2022

Information provided in these news updates is from professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North Central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South Central Idaho
Southeastern
Eastern Idaho

 

NORTHERN IDAHO – Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai & Shoshone counties

Bonner County

  • Schweitzer Mountain Resort has begun construction on resort improvements to create more efficient access to the mountain, including new roadways, 1,400 additional parking spaces and a new chairlift. This will be followed by future developments expanding the resort’s skiable terrain. Source: Bonner County Daily Bee

Kootenai County

  • The 50-acre Millworx location in Post Falls is now under development and will include a 60-unit mixed use building — with both multi-family residential units and commercial spaces — 61 townhomes, a hotel and several commercial buildings. The development, formerly home to the Idaho Veneer Mill, is slated for completion in 2023. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • Construction has begun on the planned 18-story Thomas George building in Coeur d’Alene. The building will eventually include 60 luxury condominiums and retail spaces on the ground floor. It is scheduled for completion in March 2024. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • The Kootenai Humane Society has begun construction on a new 20,000-square-foot shelter in Hayden. The new facility is expected to be completed by year-end. Source: Journal of Business

Openings

Coeur d’Alene

    • Toro Viejo & Barracho
    • ECJ Billiards
    • Bottle Joy Taphouse
    • Memory Lane Gems
    • Grace & Joy
    • Pearl and Tin

Region

    • Klein Chiropractic, Hayden
    • Advanced Personal Protection, Hayden
    • Paddler’s Alehouse, Sandpoint

Sam.Wolkenhauer@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
(208) 457-8789 ext. 4451

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Twin Falls event combines community engagement and career exploration

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 14, 2022
Media Contact: Kent.Oltrogge@labor.idaho.gov

An event June 18 at Twin Falls City Park, located at 400 Shoshone St., E., will showcase area community organizations to encourage engagement with residents while providing information on potential careers.

The Community Engagement and Career Event, hosted by the Idaho Department of Labor, runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will involve local and state government agencies, nonprofits, first responders and community providers. 

Among first responders will be Magic Valley Paramedics, the city of Twin Falls Police and Fire departments, Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office and Twin Falls Search and Rescue Team. Some of the equipment they use will be on display, such as an ambulance, a ropes rescue vehicle, police, sheriff and fire vehicles. Continue reading →

Local employers to fill open jobs at Caldwell June 16 summer job fair

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 13, 2022
Media Contact: Monico.Sanchez@labor.idaho.gov

People looking for a new job or career change can explore immediate openings with more than 50 local employers at Caldwell’s summer job fair. The event – hosted by the Idaho Department of Labor – is set for Thursday, June 16, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at its Caldwell office, 4514 Thomas Jefferson St.

Employers will be trying to fill job openings such as caregivers, general laborers, registered nurses, teachers, drivers, welders, assemblers, office staff, sales representatives, managers, warehouse workers and more.

Participating employers include Saint Alphonsus, D & B Supply, Amazon, Amalgamated Sugar, Northwest Traffic Services, Franz Bakery, the Treasure Valley YMCA, local staffing agencies and more. For a full list of employers, visit Labor’s calendar of events.

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Labor employment services now available in more than 20 southwestern Idaho mobile locations

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 13, 2022
Media Contact: jill.kleist@labor.idaho.gov

Idahoans living in remote, rural areas in southwestern Idaho can now get help finding a job in 21 Idaho Department of Labor mobile locations throughout southwestern Idaho.

Customized services like help finding a new job, access to training resources or landing a job that pays well can now be found in rural communities like Cascade, Council, Eagle, Emmett, Garden City, Garden Valley, Glenns Ferry, Grand View, Horseshoe Bend, Kuna, McCall, Meridian, Middleton, Midvale, Mountain Home, New Meadows, Payette, Star, Weiser as well as two locations in Boise.

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Labor Department works hard to prevent fraud, protect trust fund

This is the fourth article in a series on unemployment insurance.

A key aspect of the Idaho Department of Labor’s administration of the state’s unemployment insurance program is safeguarding it against fraud, misuse and malfeasance on the part of employers or individuals. The vast majority of fraud cases are individual claimants who submit ineligible claims for benefits, or those accepting unemployment insurance payments that were paid to them in error, knowingly or not.

The Idaho Department of Labor takes the issues of fraud and overpayment very seriously and actively works to recover money paid out inappropriately.

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Idaho’s wage growth driven by lower income earners

While average wage gains seem to fit in an orderly pattern over the past 10 years, large differences exist in how these gains have been distributed among lower and higher wage earners.

Average wage increases provide one view of an economy’s current situation but looking at wages by percentiles shows where hourly income growth and declines are occurring.

Each percentile represents 1% of the labor force with hourly wages arranged in order from least to greatest. For example, the 10th percentile represents wages paid to the lowest 10% of the labor population. Wages in the 90th percentile are those paid to 90% of the working population. Any wages above the 90th percentile represent the top 10% of total wage earners.

The 50th percentile, also called the median, represents the midpoint value in a data series where half of the values (wages in this case) are below and half are above. The median differs from the average, which is calculated by adding up all the individual values and dividing the total by the number of values. The average wage may be a great tool for gauging overall change trends, but this figure can also be skewed by significant outliers on either extreme of wage distribution.

This analysis focuses on Idaho’s median wages for each of the percentiles reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: 10%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 90%.

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2021 Census estimates show Idaho’s urban cities continue to see population gains

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 1, 2022
Media Contact: Jan.Roeser@labor.idaho.gov or Sam.Wolkenhauer@labor.idaho.gov

Four southwestern Idaho cities ranked in the top five slots for population growth in the state from 2020 to 2021 according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 Vintage Population Estimates.* Idaho Falls, ranked fourth and was the lone city outside of southwestern Idaho to rank in the top five.

Boise remained Idaho’s largest city, followed by Meridian, Nampa, Idaho Falls and Caldwell. Meridian edged out Nampa as Idaho’s second largest city in 2014 with the population difference increasing each year. Rankings for the top 15 Idaho cities by population size are shown in Table 1, with one change from 2020 — Kuna displaced Moscow for the No.13 spot.

Nationally, Meridian, Caldwell and Nampa ranked 13, 14 and 15 of the fastest-growing cities of 50,000 residents or more across the U.S., each at or above 5% growth rate.

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in May 2022

Information provided in these news updates is from professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North Central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South Central Idaho
Southeastern
Eastern Idaho

 

NORTHERN IDAHO – Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai & Shoshone counties

Kootenai County

  • The nonprofit urban planning and community development organization, CDA 2030, published a new “Vision and Implementation Plan” for the greater Coeur d’Alene community. The plan outlines 134 actions and recommendations related to housing, park space, conservation and other quality-of-life items for the area. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • North Idaho College received a $524,000 grant from the Idaho Workforce Development Training Fund to support its Workforce Training Center. The grant will fund apprenticeship programs for tradespeople and heavy equipment operators in the construction industry. The goal is to help meet the region’s enormous need for construction labor. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

Openings – Coeur d’Alene

  • Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop
  • CDA Pet Market
  • Stylus Wine & Vinyl Bar
  • Integrity Mental Health
  • CaterCDA
  • Lake City Deluxe Barbershop
  • Brandon Cope Massage
  • Patriot Hangout
  • Sarah Hamilton FACE

Post Falls

  • Auto Paint Plus
  • North Idaho Urology
  • St Joseph’s Ear, Nose, Throat & Allergy Clinic

Hayden

  • Open Arms

Sam.Wolkenhauer@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
(208) 457-8789 ext. 4451

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Labor expands employment services in southeastern Idaho

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: May 26, 2022
Media Contact: Jill.Kleist@labor.idaho.gov

Job search, resume assistance available in seven southeastern Idaho communities – from American Falls to the Utah border.

Idahoans living in rural southeastern Idaho have more options for obtaining services from the Idaho Department of Labor.

With a variety of office hours in seven regional mobile locations – Aberdeen, American Falls, Blackfoot, Malad, Montpelier, Preston and Soda Springs – customers can access services such as resume writing, filling out job applications, preparing for an interview, filing for unemployment benefits and learning about training resources.

These mobile sites are in addition to Labor’s full-service office in Pocatello.

All mobile locations offer walk-in hours and appointments staffed with an Idaho Department of Labor workforce consultant.

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