Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held steady in June at 2.7%, Iowa Workforce Development officials announced Thursday.
The U.S. unemployment rate dropped slightly in June, to 3.6%.
Meanwhile, Iowa’s labor force participation rate increased once again in June, to 68.7%, up from 68.5% in May. This was the fourth consecutive monthly increase, as 4,900 new workers joined the state’s labor force.
The total number of unemployed Iowans remained level from May to June, while the total number of working Iowans increased to 1,693,300 in June – 4,800 higher than May and 18,100 higher than one year ago.
“For the fourth straight month, we’ve seen an increase in the labor force participation rate, which is exactly what we want to see,” Iowa Workforce Development Executive Director Beth Townsend said in a release. “Nearly all Iowans who entered the labor force in June did so by finding a job – that’s encouraging news for job seekers and the health of the state economy as a whole.”
Iowa establishments gained 400 jobs in June, lifting total nonfarm employment to 1,595,700 jobs. That marks the fourth increase of 2023, but follows a loss of 1,300 jobs in May.
Sector-by-sector breakdowns are as follows:
- Job gains in leisure and hospitality, as well as education and health care, more than offset a cooling with the construction industry, which after a long period of strong growth has shed jobs for the second consecutive month. Goods producing sectors combined have shed 3,600 jobs since April, but private services have added 2,500 jobs. Government added 100 jobs since May and is now up 3,700 jobs versus last year, while total nonfarm employment has advanced by 26,100.
- The arts, entertainment, and recreation industries added the most jobs in June, gaining 3,200 jobs. This is the fourth consecutive increase for this industry, partially fueled by hiring at amusement, gambling, and recreation establishments.
- Education and health care establishments added 1,000 jobs and were generally driven by hiring by health care and social assistance firms. This is now the fourth consecutive gain for this supersector, which is up 3,800 jobs since February.
- On the other hand, construction shed the most jobs in June (-1,700) and has reflected some weakness this year, with 3,800 jobs pared since January.
- Professional and business services lost 1,400 jobs and was led by losses in administrative support and waste management. Financial activities posted the only other major loss (-500). This sector has trended down over the past three months, with 1,100 jobs shed since March.
- Education and health care has added the most jobs (+12,000), with just over half of the jobs added being in health care and social assistance. Leisure and hospitality is now up 9,400 jobs, following a large increase in recreational industries in June. While most sectors have advanced, there are a few sectors that have lost jobs over the past year, led by administrative support and waste management (-4,900) and transportation and warehousing (-3,300).
