County jobless rate on the rise

SANDPOINT - As evidenced by recently-released unemployment figures, the world's economic downturn is catching up to Bonner County.

According to the Idaho Department of Labor, Bonner County's unemployment numbers almost doubled from 3 percent in September 2007 to 5.8 percent in September 2008. The 2.8-percent increase equates to 1,101 lost jobs in the county.

While the jump is substantial, the disparity is magnified by unusually low unemployment numbers in 2007, said Kathryn Tacke, regional economist with the department of labor.

"It's a substantial increase in the unemployment rate. Of course it was at a very low level last September, and at this point and time it's still lower than it was much of the 1980s and 1990s, but it is of concern to see that it has jumped up like that," Tacke said.

The numbers are adjusted to account for seasonal employment, so the loss of tourism-related jobs did not skew the totals.

A portion of the lost jobs can be attributed to the downturn in the lumber industry, but Tacke said the more-than 200 layoffs from Priest River's JD Lumber Mill were not counted in the September 2008 totals, making actual unemployment even more substantial than the numbers indicate.

"Certainly if you follow the predictions of the vast majority of economists, they are saying this is the start of a national recession. Unfortunately, it's very likely we'll see more job losses in the area.," Tacke said.

In recent years, Bonner County has outperformed the state in terms of unemployment, but current numbers show the county dipping slightly behind the state's 5 percent unemployment.

Tacke said the world's economic troubles erased - or at least put on hold - some of the positive employment trends in Bonner County and the rest of the state.

"It's the nation, it's the world, it's Idaho and it's Bonner County. They'll all be seeing higher unemployment rates if things turn out the way most people think they're going to," Tacke said.