Employment picture improves (Boise, ID)

Article published Sep 2, 2006
by Joe Estrella @ The Idaho Statesman

Idaho jobless rate drops to 3.3 percent in August

Idaho's jobless rate fell three-tenths of a percent in August to 3.3 percent, reversing a slow rise since March. The Treasure Valley jobless rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 2.9 percent.

Idaho Commerce and Labor Director Roger Madsen called the August report "one of the best I've seen in 30 years in Idaho."

"Population growth, especially in-migration from other states, is having a dramatic effect (on unemployment)," Madsen said in a statement.
Statistics compiled by Commerce and Labor showed that 6,100 more people found jobs in August, pushing Idaho employment to 735,100. Employment has exceeded 700,000 for 17 consecutive months.

The drop is significant because normally the state's jobless rate moves only one-tenth of a percentage point, up or down, in August, said Commerce and Labor spokesman Bob Fick. “We won’t know if it’s a trend for a few more months, but it’s a good start,” Fick said.

Idaho unemployment reached a low for the year in March, at 3.2 percent, and crept up to 3.6 percent in July. The economy’s strength has left many employers scrambling to fill jobs.

Fick said the abnormal number of new jobs was the result of hundreds of Idaho firefighters hired by the federal government last month, as well as an uptick in new teaching positions resulting from an increase in public school enrollment.

The Meridian School District, for example, this week reported that it had enrolled about 2,000 new students this year, while Nampa and Caldwell added 539 and 234, respectively. Boise school enrollment was unchanged from 2005.

“The more students you have, the more teachers you need,” Fick said.
Nationwide, employers added 128,000 jobs last month, pulling the unemployment rate down a tenth of a percentage point to 4.7 percent, according to the U.S. Labor Department’s monthly jobs report.

The national snapshot was brighter than expected, fueling hopes that the Federal Reserve will leave interest rates unchanged when it meets Sept. 20.

“Today’s report was solid and indicates that the economy is not falling away very quickly but it certainly wasn’t so spectacular that it renewed oversized fears of inflation,” said Carl Tannenbaum, chief economist at LaSalle Bank. “The report is right on the mark. Goldilocks may be coming. The economy is not too hot nor too cold.”

Wall Street responded to the national employment picture with a rise of 83.00 points, or 0.73 percent, to 11,464.15.

However, other federal reports indicate there are still obvious weak spots in the U.S. economy, including:

* Construction spending falling in July by the largest margin in nearly five years, according to the Commerce Department.

* The Institute for Supply Management reporting that the manufacturing sector grew at a slower clip in August than in July.

The Labor Department announced that wages grew by a strong 3.9 percent in the August, the largest one-month increase since June 2001.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. To offer story ideas or comments, contact reporter Joe Estrella at jestrella@ idaho statesman. com or 377-6465.