November's Idaho jobless rate under 4%, lowest in nearly 7 years Boundary County unemployment increased

December 19, 2014

Above average employer payrolls and a declining labor force drove Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate below 4 percent last month for the first time since early 2008. Boundary County, however, saw a rise in unemployment over last month's figures. November’s 3.9 percent jobless rate for Idaho was down another two-tenths of a percentage point from October while employment continued rising at a record level to nearly 743,000. A year earlier employment was just over 731,000, and Idaho’s unemployment rate was 5.7 percent. The last time Idaho’s unemployment rate fell below 4 percent was March 2008 as the recession gained momentum. In Boundary County, November's unemployment rate was 5.5%, up from 4.9% last month. Department of Labor figures show Boundary County's labor force numbering 4,375 individuals, with 242 unemployed. The numbers are significantly better, however, when compared to this same time last year: Boundary County's November 2013 unemployment rate then was 8.8% November’s unemployment estimate is preliminary and - along with the rest of 2014 - will be revised in March by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics based on additional employment data. This is the 13th year Idaho’s rate has been lower than the national rate, which remained unchanged at 5.8 percent. At 5.5%, Boundary County's rate is still better than the national average.