Jobless rate remains at 4.4 percent

POST FALLS — Kootenai County's unemployment rate in June was 4.4 percent, which was unchanged from May, according to an Idaho Department of Labor report released today.

Sam Wolkenhauer, IDOL regional economist, said June is normally the month with the largest increase in the labor force due to recent college graduates looking for work and agricultural employment picking up.

"This year we saw a very flat labor force growth," he said. "Kootenai County's labor force grew by less than 50 people."

He believes part of the reason for the minimal growth was because IDOL collected data for its monthly report a week earlier than usual because of the way the days fell in June.

"There’s a whole week’s worth of activity that didn’t get picked up, and it’s entirely possible that it will show up in the July numbers, which we will be releasing in August," he said.

Wolkenhauer said he believes it’s likely that people will find jobs as they trickle into the labor force, but doesn't believe the unemployment rate is going to change much anytime soon.

"That’s good news for workers because a bottomed-out unemployment rate is often a sign that the labor market will begin putting upward pressure on wages," he said.

The jobless rate in Coeur d'Alene went up one-tenth of a percent to 4.6 percent, while the number in Post Falls dropped two-tenths to 3.9 percent.

Idaho's rate is up one-tenth to 4 percent, while the nation's rate dropped two-tenths to 5.3 percent. 

An increase of workers entering the labor force caused the state's slight uptick, the report states.

"Economic expansion and the resulting demand for employees caused an additional 2,300 people to re-enter the labor force and look for work, making June the sixth consecutive month of growth," the report states. "It also brought the year-over-year increase to 19,700 workers, the largest gain since March 2006."

Idaho’s total labor force now stands at 797,900, with the most recent increase pushing the state’s labor force participation rate — the percentage of the population aged 16 years and older with jobs or looking for work — up to 64.1 percent.

Nearly all of Idaho’s industries are experiencing annual job gains, with the largest increases in construction, education and health, trade, transportation and utilities and services.

The Conference Board, a Washington, D.C., think-tank, estimates just over one unemployed worker for every Idaho job opening, further evidence of a strong demand and tight supply for workers.