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Idaho Unemployment continues to Hold Steady

Ken Dey
Idaho Statesman
The Idaho Statesman | Edition Date: 07-08-2006

Idaho's latest unemployment numbers indicate that Idaho's economy is in no danger of slowing down.

"Idaho's economy is amazingly strong," said Boise economist John Church said.

For the 14th straight month the state's unemployment rate remained below 4 percent, the Idaho Commerce and Labor Department said Friday. The 3.5 percent rate was unchanged from May and well below the national 4.6 percent rate.

"The economy has never, at any time in Idaho history, been this robust," Commerce and Labor Director Roger B. Madsen said in a news release.

Ada County continued to post one of the state's lowest unemployment rates at 2.5 percent. Canyon County's came in at 2.7 percent. Meridian led all the cities in the state with 2 percent.

Nationwide, the story was different. Economists had forecasted an increase of 175,000 jobs in June, but the numbers came in at 121,000.

"When you only have 121,000 jobs being added, that sounds pretty puny," said Ken Mayland, an economist at ClearView Economics. "On the face of it, this is somewhat disappointing." The job picture, he said, is consistent with other barometers that suggest economic growth is slowing.

But Church doesn't expect the national slowdown to have an impact yet on Idaho's economy.

"The budget numbers and tax revenues also seem to reflect that," he said.

State leaders are already predicting a nearly $200 million budget surplus for the coming year.

Church said low unemployment can lead to labor shortages. "That's always an issue when you have rates in the 3 percent to 3.5 percent range," he said.

Bob Fick, a spokesman for Commerce and Labor, said Idaho has experienced skill shortages in certain fields, including welders and machinists. Fick said the state is working with colleges to increase training opportunities in high-demand skill areas.

Finding money to provide the training, however, is a challenge because of cutbacks in federal work-force training money, he said. Over the last five years, federal funding under the Workforce Investment Act has been cut to $8 million a year from $15 million.

Church said low unemployment rates are making Idaho an attractive place for people to relocate to, which will help bring more people into the labor force to help overcome shortages.

Fick suspects the low unemployment rate also will increase the average wage in Idaho.

Nationwide, workers' average hourly earnings jumped to $16.70 in June, a 0.5 percent increase from May. Economists were expecting a more modest rise of 0.3 percent. For the last 12 months, wages have gone up by 3.9 percent, the largest annual increase since June 2001.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.