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(Undated) -- Iowa's unemployment rate continues to drop, down another 0.1% between March and April.
"Iowa had another steady month in April," says Iowa Workforce Development Marketing and Communications Officer Jesse Dougherty. "We actually saw the unemployment rate drop from 2.8% to 2.7%."
April is the fifth-straight month Iowa's unemployment rate has either stayed the same or dropped.
Dougherty says Iowa's labor force participation also continues to grow.
"Our state's labor force added 4,300 new workers. What's notable about that is that's not only encouraging news for the job seekers we have out in Iowa but it's also encouraging for employers to know that the pool of available workers continues to grow."
Iowa did see a loss of 300 jobs in April. However, Dougherty doesn't see that as a major concern.
"We see that as some general tightening in the economy," says Dougherty. "What we did see though was we did see growth in manufacturing, healthcare, and retail, and when you see that type of growth across several industries we still see the overall health of this workforce to be high in Iowa."
Dougherty says the drop in jobs and increase in workers signals a more competitive workforce.
Iowa's labor participation rate is also nearing where it was before the coronavirus pandemic. Before the pandemic Iowa's labor force participation rate was around 69%. In April it went from 68.2% to 68.3%. During the pandemic it was down to 65% and 66%.
"Now it's really about identifying those Iowans who are still facing a barrier to entering the labor market," says Dougherty. "And if that is we want to help identify that and help them find the right fit."
He also says Iowa's labor force participation is one of the highest in the country, ranking 5th last month.
Looking ahead to summer Iowa Workforce Development expects to see an increase in jobs. With students getting out of school Iowa typically sees an uptick in leisure and hospitality jobs.
You can see Iowa's full April unemployment report at iowalmi.gov.