(Des Moines) Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 3.4% in February, unchanged from January and slightly lower than 3.5% a year ago. The national unemployment rate rose to 4.4% in February. The number of unemployed Iowans decreased to 58,700 from 59,100 in January, while the total workforce fell by 1,600 to 1,682,900, though it’s up 11,800 from last year. Iowa’s labor force participation rate dropped slightly to 67.8%.
Beth Townsend, Executive Director of Iowa Workforce Development, highlighted positive trends, noting growth in accommodations, food services, and construction, with health care and social assistance adding 3,200 jobs over the past year. Despite this, Iowa lost 4,400 jobs in February, lowering total nonfarm employment to 1,576,400. Private service industries, particularly education and trade, were the main contributors to the losses, while goods-producing sectors, especially construction, gained 1,300 jobs.
Annual job losses totaled 19,200, with significant declines in trade, transportation, and manufacturing. Health care, construction, and administrative support sectors showed growth, adding 3,200, 2,100, and 1,100 jobs, respectively. Over 53,000 job openings are available on IowaWORKS.gov for job seekers.
