Unemployment Rates Hold Steady at 3.4% in February

Iowa’s unemployment rate held steady at 3.4% in February. Iowa Workforce Development director Beth Townsend says there are some signs of tightening in sections of the economy.

Townsend says there are also positives in the job market.

The labor force participation rate has been moving up slowly, and she says this drop is not a major concern.

Townsend says the unemployment insurance claim numbers are another indicator of what’s happening in the job market.

Townsend says the average duration someone is on unemployment remains less than ten weeks. She says there are more than 51-thousand jobs available on IowaWorks.gov. 

The unemployment rates for our local counties include:

• 3.6% Delaware County
• 3.7% Buchanan County and Dubuque County
• 4.1% Linn County and Fayette County
• 4.4% Jones County
• 5.1% Clayton County

The U.S. unemployment rate increased to 4.4% in February.

story courtesy of Radio Iowa