• Home
  • News
    • Politics & Government
    • Business & Economy
    • Crime / Courts
    • Health / Medicine
  • Sports
    • High School Sports
    • Radio Iowa Poll
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Support Page
  • Contact Us
    • Reporters

Radio Iowa

Iowa's Radio News Network

You are here: Home / Business / October unemployment rate 5.1 percent in Iowa

October unemployment rate 5.1 percent in Iowa

November 20, 2012 By O. Kay Henderson

The state’s unemployment rate dropped slightly in October, to 5.1 percent. Kerry Koonce with the Iowa Workforce Development agency says there were 1700 fewer unemployment Iowans in October compared to September.

“We had a drop of a tenth of a percent in our unemployment rate,” Koonce says.

There was an increase in employment in the private sector in October, according to Koonce, an additional 6000 jobs.

“The largest increase since February,” Koonce says, “including 1500 jobs in manufacturing, which is always good when we add jobs there.”

There were job gains in education and health services as well.

“And when they say education, they don’t mean your public schools. It’s your private colleges and institutions like that and there were 1800 jobs added there, split pretty evenly between education and health services,” Koonce says. “…Then 2600 jobs (were added) in leisure and hospitality, which over 1400 of those were in the accommodations and food service industry.”

The national unemployment rate in October was 7.9 percent. Iowa’s unemployment rate a year ago was six-tenths of a percent higher than it was this October. There are pockets of the state where unemployment remains far higher than the statewide average.

“Southeast Iowa, unfortunately, is always higher,” Koonce says. “Lee County is at 7.9 percent. That’s the highest one in the state.”

Koonce says there was a bit of a leveling off, though, throughout the state, as only four other counties recorded an October unemployment rate at or above six-point-one percent.

“Those are Hamilton kind of in north central Iowa, Monona on the western side of the state and then Wapello and Appanoose,” Koonce says.

Ottumwa in is Wapello County. Centerville is the largest city in Appanoose County. Almost 84,000 Iowans were unemployed in October. According to statistics from the Iowa Workforce Development agency, over 1.55 million Iowans had a job in October.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Filed Under: Business, News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: Employment and Labor

Featured Stories

Grundy Center man sentenced to life for killing State Trooper

Jodi Husientruit remembered 27 years after she disappeared

Iowa Supreme Court rules in Mahaska-Marion County regional airport dispute

Pheasant harvest and hunter numbers both up this year

Iowa Supreme Court overturns ruling creating constitutional abortion right

TwitterFacebook
Tweets by RadioIowa

Radio Iowa/Baseball Coaches Association High School Poll 6/27/22

AJ Green signs with Milwaukee

Iowa to host Georgia Tech in ACC/Big Ten Challenge

Iowa State adds a defensive back

Radio Iowa/Baseball Coaches Association High School Poll 6/20/22

More Sports

eNews and Updates

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Archives

Copyright © 2022 · Learfield News & Ag, LLC