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Gem State Economics: Idaho is fastest growing
state in job growth; Average 2015 unemployment
rate was 4.1%
Boundary County data
also noted |
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February 27, 2016 |
The Idaho Department of Labor recently announced
that Idaho’s 4.4 percent over-the-year growth of
seasonally adjusted nonfarm jobs in December
2015 was the nation’s fastest – the third
consecutive month Idaho has held this
distinction.
Idaho’s nation-leading nonfarm job growth of 4.4
percent was the largest gain in our state since
2005, with a seasonally adjusted increase of
29,100 jobs from December 2014 to December 2015.
The greatest gains were in construction,
manufacturing and real estate. Mining and
logging, information, and state government were
the only sectors to show declines.
Idaho unemployment numbers improved
Our state also posted good news in data on
unemployment. Idaho spent most of 2015 close to
full employment with the unemployment rate
changing little throughout the year. In
addition, the unemployment rate for 2015 was
improved significantly over the previous year
2014 rate.
The state’s average unemployment rate for 2015
was 4.1 percent according to revised estimates
released yesterday by the Idaho Department of
Labor and Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 4.1
percent rate was down from 2014's rate of 4.8
percent.
Labor force and employment increase
Idaho’s labor force showed an average annual
increase of 15,946 people in 2015 for a total of
796,679, up 2 percent from 2014.
Statewide, total employment also increased in
2015, up 2.8 percent to 763,907, while the total
number of unemployed dropped to 32,772, down
12.6 percent from 2014.
The revised annual average estimates are the
result of a benchmark process conducted by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics. The process takes
into account updated and additional data to
revise 12 months of previously reported labor
market numbers by smoothing out the volatility
of monthly change.
Idaho December unemployment rate
In month-to-month numbers, Idaho's most recently
released seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate
was the rate for December 2015, which was 3.9%.
With Idaho's December’s total employment at
774,543 and only 31,460 unemployed people
looking for work, there were only 1.2 unemployed
individuals per job listing.
Boundary County data
Locally, Boundary County numbers were not as
impressive for the month of December 2015.
Department of Labor statistics show Boundary
County's total civilian labor force to be 5,132
individuals, 308 of whom are unemployed, for a
seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate of 6.0
percent. More Boundary County residents were out
of work in December than the previous month of
November 2015, when the rate ws 5.2%.
Boundary County's December 2015 rate of 6.0
percent, however, was much improved over the
previous year's December 2014 rate of 9.0
percent. |
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