The latest numbers show Iowa’s unemployment rate continues to edge down — hitting its lowest level in nearly five years. Ann Wagner is a labor analyst with Iowa Workforce Development. She says the seasonally adjusted rate for the state dropped to three-point-four percent — the lowest rate since September of 2001 when it hit the same rate.
That rate is down from three-point-six percent in April and well below the four-point-six percent rate of one year ago. Wagner says Iowans headed to work in record numbers in May as the number of working Iowans hit a record of one-million-622-thousand-200. Wagner says the number of non-farm jobs also hit a record of one-million-504-thousand-700.
Wagner says there appears to be a variety of new jobs that helped to push down the unemployment rate. She says the largest gain was in manufacturing, followed by trade and transportation, government and finance jobs.
Wagner says the growth in jobs this year has been slow but steady. Wagner says non-farm jobs were up a little over 26-thousand. She says construction, education and health, manufacturing, professional and business services made up the areas with the largest gains. The U.S. unemployment rate slipped to a five-year low of four-point-six percent in May.