Idaho unemployment drops to 3 percent, lowest since 2008
Idaho’s unemployment rate fell to 3 percent in July.
The Idaho Department of Labor in a news release Friday says that’s the lowest level for the state since mid-2008.
The agency says nonfarm jobs grew by 4,300 with the trade, transportation and utilities sectors accounting for about 1,700 of those jobs.
Total employment in the state climbed to nearly 794,000 during the month.
The agency says part of the reason for the low unemployment rate is a drop in the state’s labor participation rate. That’s the percentage of people 16 years and older with jobs or looking for work.
The agency says Idaho’s rate is 63 percent, the lowest participation rate since May of 1976.
