DES MOINES, Iowa - The jobless rate in Iowa is dropping.
There were 3,516 claims for unemployment benefits last week, marking the fifth straight week of declining jobless claims.
There's still 154,752 people without job in the state. By comparison, ongoing claims peaked in the first week of May at 191,257.
First time unemployment claims were largely unchanged. A slight in increase of 28 people filed first time claims, bringing the total to 9,516.
Unemployment insurance benefit payments totaled $37,966,993.80 last week, down from $40,515,869.87 in the previous week.
The following industries had the most claims:
- Manufacturing (2,160)
- Industry Not Available - Self-employed, Independent Contractors, etc. (1,408)
- Health Care & Social Assistance (840)
- Accommodation & Food Services (649)
- Retail Trade (602)