Iowa continues to hover near a record for the number of people in the statewho have jobs. Sha Khan tracks employment stats for Iowa WorkforceDevelopment and says employment in the state reached a recordone-million-540-thousand in August of 1996. One-million-539-thousand peoplehad jobs in Iowa last month. Khan says the unemployment rate didn’t changelast month. The rate stayed at two-point-six percent in February, the sameas in January. Several layoffs have been in the news recently, but Khan saysthe labor market has thus far weathered those storms. Khan says all thenational experts predict the economic slowdown will eventually impact thelabor market. Khan says those same experts predicted a labor market slidebefore, but that slide never materialized. The national unemployment rateheld steady last month, at four-point-two percent.
