Idaho's personal income slips for second consecutive quarter

COEUR d'ALENE - The loss of construction and manufacturing jobs combined with the absence of an economic stimulus check caused Idaho to be one of only three states to have its personal income level slip two quarters in a row.

Total personal income in Idaho fell 0.3 percent during the summer quarter, according to Idaho Commerce and Labor. Only Arkansas and Louisiana posted larger percentage drops.

"The loss of big wage jobs in manufacturing and construction clearly had an effect," said Bob Fick, public affairs officer with Idaho Department of Labor.

Idaho dipped from 53,000 construction jobs in November 2006 to 45,000 construction jobs in November 2008, Fick said. The number of manufacturing jobs declined from 67,000 in November 2006 to 59,000 in November 2008, Fick said.

"Those are good paying jobs," Fick said. "You pull those out and you're going to do something to the annual wage and personal wage."

Fick said Idaho's third quarter decline also reflects Idahoans not having stimulus checks that were sent out the first quarter, but not the second or third.

If the effect of the economic stimulus checks are removed from the equation, Fick said, Idaho's net earnings - the money paid workers and the profits taken by business proprietors and investors - were up .27 percent.

"There was growth, although minimum, in wages," Fick said. "All things considered, that's probably pretty good."

Income declines in agriculture, construction, manufacturing and transportation were offset by earnings increases in health care, business services, mining and state and local government, which typically boost services during economic declines. The other sectors of the economy were essentially flat, Fick said.

Kathryn Tacke, Idaho Department of Labor regional economist, said local personal income data for 2008 is not available locally and won't be until April 2010.

"It's actually a top-down process. They (at the state level) have a lot more indicators coming in earlier, which are national," Tacke said.

She did say that "You can be pretty sure it's down in our area."

Stock dividends are down, construction jobs have dried up, and farm income - which had been running high for a while - has seen a decline as well.

Tacke said she doesn't believe manufacturing jobs, while declining statewide, have taken as much of a hit locally and pointed to the Micron layoffs.

"One of the reasons the state was hit hard in manufacturing is because Boise (the metro area) is so high-tech while we have more diversity here," she said.