Author Archives: Idaho Department of Labor

About Idaho Department of Labor

Our vision is to be Idaho’s first choice for employment services. We connect job seekers with Idaho employers, deliver employment services to Idaho businesses and support people during career and life transitions.

Discovering What Idaho’s Youth Need to Succeed at Work

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Month Day, 2021
Media Contact: Georgia Smith, georgia.smith@labor.idaho.gov

The Idaho Department of Labor is asking Idaho youth between the ages 16-24 who are out of school to talk about what they need to succeed in the workplace.

Participants will share their thoughts during six focus group sessions scheduled for April 19-30 at local Labor offices and several postsecondary schools throughout the state.

The results will be used to improve the recruitment and service delivery methods for youth employment and training programs funded by the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

Continue reading →

Idaho’s March Unemployment Rate Down to 3.2%

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: April 16, 2021
Media Contacts: Karen Jarboe Singletary, karen.jarboesingletary@labor.idaho.gov or Salvador Vazquez, salvador.vazquez@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.2% in March, dropping slightly from a revised 3.3% in February.

With an over-the-month increase of 1,100 jobs, the state’s nonfarm payroll growth has leveled off over the past two months.

Civilian Labor Force

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted labor force was virtually unchanged in March at 899,375, down from 899,915 in February.

Continue reading →

Multi-Employer Job Fair Set for April 15 in Boise

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: April 9, 2021
Media Contacts: Anthony DeVille, Anthony.deville@labor.idaho.gov or Julie Sherry, Julie.sherry@labor.idaho.gov

Employers representing a variety of industries are among those looking for workers at a job fair on Thursday, April 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn, Boise Spectrum at 7699 W. Spectrum St. in Boise.

Participating employers include Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn, Autovol, Sorrento Lactalis, AT&T, Albertsons, Express Employment Professionals, Amazon, Atlas Staffing, Bluebird Carwash, Paradies Lagardere Travel Retail, World Connect, Community Partnerships of Idaho, Hearthside Food Solutions and many more.

Some of the open positions include production operator, sanitation operator, customer service representatives, direct support professionals, behavioral health specialists and skilled construction trades, such as electricians, drywall hangers, roofers and framers.

Continue reading →

CWI’s Partnership with Idaho Job Corps Helps Students Thrive

The following article was first published April 2, 2021, on the College of Western Idaho website.

College of Western Idaho (CWI) began an exciting partnership with the Idaho Department of Labor in November 2019 to deliver educational services to Idaho Job Corps students.

Idaho Job Corps welding student, Ben Still

Idaho Job Corps serves students, 16-24 years old, by connecting them to skills training and employment. Students can earn a high school diploma or GED while training in CWI classes that prepare students to work in various industries, including welding, construction, and the medical field.

On March 18, CWI and Idaho Job Corps staff were pleased to present a certificate of completion to the first group of students finishing their welding training.

Continue reading →

ID.me Helps Stop Unemployment Insurance Fraud

by Idaho Department of Labor Director Jani Revier

Crime rings across the globe are exploiting the COVID-19 crisis by attempting to commit large-scale fraud against multiple state unemployment insurance programs, and Idaho is not exempt.

These crime rings possess large databases of stolen personally identifiable information which is used to submit a large volume of applications for unemployment benefits. Scammers use the names and addresses of Idaho residents, but then have payments sent to bank accounts in other states or have bank cards mailed to different addresses.

Continue reading →

Serve Idaho Celebrates Impact of National Service

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: April 6 2021
Media Contacts: Renee Bade, renee.bade@labor.idaho.gov or Micaela de Loyola-Carkin, Micaela.deloyola-carkin@labor.idaho.gov

Serve Idaho joins leaders across the country in the ninth annual National Service Recognition Day, a nationwide bipartisan initiative to highlight the impact of national service in tackling local problems. The event was established to recognize the positive impact of national service, to thank those who serve and to encourage more citizens to give back to their communities.

This year’s event is especially meaningful as tens of thousands of AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors members have supported communities in response to the pandemic and other challenges during the past year. National service members and volunteers across the nation continue to help distribute vaccines, work at food banks, support tutoring initiatives, safely get students back in the classroom and support isolated seniors.

Continue reading →

Idaho Beef Industry Showing Marked Recovery

The beef life cycle is one of the most complex of any food, taking anywhere from two to three years to bring beef from farm to fork. This process involves multiple stakeholders, beginning with farmers and ranchers and ending with packing plant workers. Traditionally, the U.S. beef industry has been comprised of three main sectors ‒ cattle production, feedlots and meat processing. The packing sector is the primary driving factor in the beef industry’s vertical supply chain. The packers are the market outlet for the feeding sector and in turn, the feedlots are the primary market outlet for the cow-calf producers.

An overview of Idaho’s beef industry shows the cattle production sector’s total cow-calf inventory has grown slightly faster than the national average. A 2019 January industry snapshot shows Idaho’s cattle inventory stood at 2.5 million cows and calves, raised across 7,400 farm operations. This inventory comprised 504,000 beef cows that had calved and 625,000 milk cows that had calved. About 48% of this inventory was in south central Idaho, which has a competitive cattle production advantage in forage and crop aftermath grazing resources compared with the rest of the state.

Continue reading →

FAQs for Unemployment Claimants about the American Rescue Plan Act

Are the unemployment insurance benefits funded through the CARES Act extended?

Yes. On March 12, 2021, Pres. Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. This Act extended the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program and the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program. The programs are set to end on week ending Sept. 4, 2021. The American Rescue Plan contains a new provision to exempt $10,200 of unemployment benefits received in 2020 from federal income taxes. The state of Idaho does not exempt unemployment insurance benefits from state income taxes.

I am currently on an extension. Am I eligible for additional weeks?

Yes. Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) is often referred to as extended benefits. The bill added 29 weeks, extending the maximum number of benefit weeks from 24 to 53.

I am currently self-employed and receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). Are my benefits extended?

Yes. PUA is a program for low wage earners and self-employed individuals. The bill extended the program an additional 29 weeks, extending the maximum number of weeks from 50 to 79.

Continue reading →

Idaho’s February Unemployment Rate Down to 3.3%

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: March 26, 2021
Media Contacts: Craig Shaul, craig.shaul@labor.idaho.gov or Karen Jarboe Singletary, karen.jarboesingletary@labor.idaho.gov

 Year-to-year nonfarm employment growth of 1% leads nation

February’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.3%, down slightly from a revised 3.5% in January.

Idaho’s nonfarm payrolls edged upward by 1,200, leveling off after January’s gain of 4,500.

Civilian Labor Force

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted labor force remained virtually unchanged in February at 899,796, down from 900,205 in January.

The total number of working Idahoans increased by 912 in February to 870,056.

The number of unemployed Idahoans dropped 4.5% to 29,740.

Continue reading →

BoiseDev – Level up: Idaho programs help skill up workers for new jobs

By Margaret Carmel – BoiseDev senior reporter

Parker Carey got a leg up into his first job with the help of the State of Idaho.

Instead of flipping burgers or busing tables, Carey, 16, is learning the ins-and-outs of the meat cutting trade behind the counter at Idaho Meat and Seafood in Meridian. He earned his high school equivalency degree, learned the basics of food service at Life’s Kitchen last year and then with the help of the Department of Labor he landed at the butcher’s shop to build work experience.

“It feels good,” he said, before clocking in for a shift. “I feel accomplished in my life, like I can actually do things with myself. It’s nice to be able to afford things I couldn’t afford, so I like that part of it too.”

Carey is taking advantage of one of a raft of workforce training programs offered through the Idaho Department of Labor. His program, called WIOA for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, helps connect out of work or underemployed Idahoans with job training in high demand fields. Through the program, the federally-funded program covers nearly the entire cost of wages for an employee like Carey in exchange for a company training them.

Read the full story on the BoiseDev website.