BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Nearly 25,000 people returned to work in June as Idaho’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.6%, the Idaho Department of Labor said Friday.
The agency attributed last month’s 3.4% drop to the state’s economy reopening during the coronavirus pandemic.
But cases of COVID-19 have been increasing sharply in recent weeks, and highly populated Ada County that includes Boise reverted to more restrictions in late June and shut down bars.
The Labor Department says that for June, the number of unemployed Idahoans dropped to about 50,000. The agency also said that the number of workers with jobs rose to about 842,000, a nearly 5% increase from May.
Idaho had more than 13,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and 114 deaths through Thursday, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
The number of infections is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some - especially older adults and people with existing health problems - it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
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