Idaho's underemployed rose in 2010

The ranks of Idaho's underemployed grew to over 97,000 in 2010 while the official number of unemployed hit a record 70,000.

Based on Idaho Department of Labor statistics, most of the underemployed were working part-time or temporary jobs lasting less than five months when they wanted and needed full-time work. Others held associate degrees or higher and were still looking for new jobs because their current jobs did not pay or provide responsibilities at the level their education and training normally command.

The number of Idaho's underemployed workers totaled 97,200 of the 687,000 with jobs in 2010, up 9,500 from 2009 when total employment was 693,000. That put the rate of underemployment at 14.2 percent of total employment in 2010, up from 12.7 percent in 2009. It could be even higher because the recession has forced some workers to take part-time jobs for longer than five months because they cannot find anything better.

The number of workers considered fully employed dropped from 605,000 in 2009 to 590,000 last year. Based on the aftermath of the 2001 recession, underemployment could continue to increase for another year or two while the economy finally stabilizes and begins to expand again.

The Idaho Department of Labor estimated that just under 11,000 of the underemployed in 2010 were people with full-time jobs looking for work with paychecks or had responsibilities more aligned with their education or skills. That was essentially unchanged from 2009.

The increase from 2009 in the number of workers forced into part-time or temporary jobs reflected the caution employers were exercising in their business decisions in an economy that shed 60,000 jobs and over $1 billion in wages during the long recession.

Regionally, Idaho's unemployment rates for 2010 were up markedly from 2009, generally limiting any increase in the underemployment rates. But significant jumps in underemployment were posted in south central, southeastern and eastern Idaho, regions with the lowest official unemployment rates, suggesting a trade-off between lost jobs and underemployment.

Southwestern Idaho, the state's population center, posted a decline in underemployment.