Tag Archives: Labor market information

Around Idaho: Economic activity, February 2026

Map of IdahoInformation provided in these news updates is collected up until the end of February and includes professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South central Idaho
Southeastern Idaho
Eastern Idaho

NORTHERN IDAHO

Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai and Shoshone counties

Regional news

  • Axis Spine Center opened a new facility within the Northwest Specialty Hospital Network in Post Falls. The new facility provides a wide range of spine and pain management services, including diagnostics, rehabilitation services and surgical interventions. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • A joint venture between Americas Gold and Silver and United States Antimony will build and operate a new antimony processing plant at the Galena Mine near Wallace. The partnership will create a fully domestic and complete supply chain for antimony, which is a critical mineral used in special alloys, semiconductors, batteries and other products. Construction will be completed within 18 months of budget approval. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

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Economic snapshot: A look at Idaho’s full-service restaurant industry

Full-Service Restaurants have a significant impact on Idaho’s economy. In 2025, the National Restaurant Association estimated that Idaho’s Full-Service Restaurants provided $2.76 billion in direct economic output and employs more than 28,500 people. This is 3% of Idaho’s overall employment.1

Full-Service Restaurants are restaurants with a waitstaff and offer a dining experience with table service, compared with Limited-Service Restaurants which customers generally take the food to go and there is no table service, such as a fast-food restaurant.

Full-Service Restaurant in Idaho experienced disproportionate employment drops during the pandemic compared with total employment. This was due to people not going out as much to eat. While the state’s overall total employment declined 10.2% from 2019 to 2020 due to the pandemic, Full-Service Restaurant employment declined by a larger 14.3%. Since then, the industry in Idaho stagnated from 2023-2024 (shown in Figure 1) and has not returned to the level it was before the pandemic.

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Discover how Idaho’s labor market relies on international export partnerships

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Feb. 3, 2026
Media Contact: Ryan.Whitesides@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho Department of Labor Economist Ryan Whitesides will be presenting with a panel of state and federal government representatives, discussing Idaho’s labor market reliance on international export partnerships at a webinar, Tuesday, Feb. 10.

Representatives from Idaho Commerce, the Idaho State Department of Agriculture and the U.S. International Trade Administration will be in attendance.

Idaho’s foreign trade portfolio comprises over 205 nations who consume the state’s exported goods and services. Of these total exports, over 80% are manufactured products. This webinar will explore what these particular goods and services are and the jobs they support.

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Around Idaho: Economic activity, January 2026

Map of IdahoInformation provided in these news updates is collected up until the end of January and includes professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South central Idaho
Southeastern Idaho
Eastern Idaho

NORTHERN IDAHO

Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai and Shoshone counties

Regional news

  • Amid the warmest winter on record, snowpack across northern Idaho is far below normal, creating what a hydrologist at the Idaho Department of Water Resources have called a “snow drought.” Precipitation levels have been normal, but high temperatures have led to more rain than snow, allowing high runoff. The low snowpack makes it likely that northern Idaho will continue to see drought conditions for the fourth consecutive year. Source: Bonner County Daily Bee
  • Heritage Health is breaking ground on Phase 2 of their Center for Healthy Living. When the new phase is completed, it will consolidate a variety of services in a single facility, including medical, dental, pediatric and behavioral health services. The Phase 2 facility will cost $4 million and is expected to be completed in the fall of 2026. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • An 85,000 square foot, $5 million indoor pickleball facility is under construction in Post Falls. Slated for opening in June, The Flying Pickle is the first northern Idaho franchise for the Meridian-based company. The facility will include 24 indoor courts. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

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Idaho’s December unemployment rate decreases to 3.6%

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Jan. 23, 2026
Media Contact: Craig.Shaul@labor.idaho.gov or  Will.Hoenike@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased between November and December, from 3.7% to 3.6%.

December’s labor force increased by 1,628 (0.2%) people to 1,013,141 while the labor force participation rate – the percentage of people 16 years or older who are either employed or looking for work – was unchanged between November and December, remaining at 62.9%.

Total employment increased by 1,755 (0.2%) to 976,258 and unemployment decreased by 127 (-0.3%) to 36,883. Continue reading →

Idaho’s unemployment rate at 3.7% in November

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Jan. 7, 2026
Media Contact: Craig.Shaul@labor.idaho.gov or Will.Hoenike@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in November was 3.7%. This rate matches the 3.7% unemployment rate published in September. October labor force data was not available due to the federal government shutdown.

November’s labor force was 1,011,367 while the labor force participation rate – the percentage of people 16 years or older who are either employed or looking for work – was at 62.9%. Total employment was 974,410 and unemployment was 36,957.

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Around Idaho: Economic activity, December 2025

Map of IdahoInformation provided in these news updates is collected up until the end of December and includes professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South central Idaho
Southeastern Idaho
Eastern Idaho

NORTHERN IDAHO

Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai and Shoshone counties

Regional news

  • Unfavorable weather has so far prevented area ski resorts from full and consistent operations. Lookout Pass and Silver Mountain, in Shoshone County, both had delayed openings and have since experienced intermittent closures due to inconsistent weather. Schweitzer, in Bonner County, currently has one lift operating. Idaho ranked No. 10 nationally for total annual skier visits. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • Northern Idaho Advanced Care Hospital is expanding services with the opening of a new 17-bed rehabilitation unit at their Post Falls campus. This will raise the capacity at the Post Falls campus, which is shared with Rehabilitation Hospital of the Northwest, to a total of 47 intensive medical rehabilitation beds. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

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Idaho’s September unemployment rate remains at 3.7%

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Dec. 11, 2025
Media Contact: Craig.Shaul@labor.idaho.gov or Will.Hoenike@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged between August and September, staying at 3.7%.

September’s labor force increased by 687 (0.1%) people to 1,010,111 while the labor force participation rate – the percentage of people 16 years or older who are either employed or looking for work – decreased by 0.1 percentage point between August and September, down to 63%.

Total employment increased by 441 to 972,828 and unemployment increased by 246 (0.7%) to 37,283. Continue reading →

Around Idaho: Economic activity, November 2025

Map of IdahoInformation provided in these news updates is collected up until the end of November and includes professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South central Idaho
Southeastern Idaho
Eastern Idaho

NORTHERN IDAHO

Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai and Shoshone counties

Regional news

  • The regional housing market remains strong, according to the Coeur d’Alene Regional Realtors. Median prices on single family homes increased 4.1% year over year in October, while year to date home sales increased 3.6% in Kootenai County. Median prices and sales also increased in Shoshone County by 3.9% and 6.4% respectively. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

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Idaho grows its waste management workforce

Employment needs within Idaho’s waste management industry remain reliably consistent over time, reflecting the essential nature of the services it provides. Trash doesn’t take a day off and continues to be generated even during the coldest months of winter, the worst economic recessions and amid unpredictable 100-year pandemics. While trash volume will be dictated in part by consumer behavior, it is more closely associated with population growth.

Between 2014-2024, Idaho added 370,000 new residents and led the nation with a population growth rate of 23%. This was more than three times the U.S. growth rate of 7%.¹ During the same period, as shown in Figure 1, privatized waste management employment in Idaho added more than 2,000 jobs and increased by 98% (compared with 23% growth for the U.S. waste management sector). Like population, Idaho’s private waste management employment experienced the highest growth rate of any U.S. state.²

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