Last week, the head of Idaho’s Labor Department encouraged state and federal lawmakers to vote against any further extensions of federal unemployment insurance benefits. Director Roger Madsen said he considers unemployment insurance to be one of this country’s most successful social programs, but believes extensions hold back business growth. You can read Madsen’s letter here.
We decided to look at how Idaho’s unemployment insurance program works and how it could be impacted by the end of federal extensions. Lets start with the basics. Continue Reading →
Fairfield's downtown farmer's market is organized by a couple who say they needed a new source of income after one of them lost a job.
StateImpact’srecent story about Fairfield, in Camas County, described the about-face the town has suffered due to the recession. What it didn’t talk about is the town’s water system. In short, it’s not great. Right now, a water pressure problem allows bacteria to build up, clogging meters, pipes and distribution lines. That can have some unhappy consequences, according to Carleen Herring, vice president of Region IV Development Association.
“They get these little globs of a biofilm, which, for lack of a better phrase, is slime,” she said. “So if you open your faucet in the dark of night to get yourself a glass of water, you’d better let it run for a few minutes or you’re going to have a glass full of ooze.” Continue Reading →
When I went to Camas County to report our recent story about Fairfield, I was thinking about numbers. The county is rural and small. That means it has a low population — about 1,100 people — which makes its unemployment rate a moving target. In August, unemployment in Camas County stood at 16.7 percent. Only Adams County had a higher rate, at 16.8. In September, the most recent month for which numbers are available, Camas County’s rate was a much better-sounding 11.8 percent.
I was thinking about all of this because of the general story idea I was aiming to follow. Idaho is somewhat unusual in that its unemployment rate has gone up since the summer of 2009. (That’s when the Great Recession officially ended, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.) Camas County’s unemployment rate reflects this post-recession rise. Continue Reading →
Earlier this week Idaho’s Department of Labor Director Roger Madsen asked state lawmakers and Idaho’s congressional delegation to oppose any further extension of federal unemployment insurance benefits.
Now, Republican Governor Butch Otter is weighing in (through his spokesman), after the Idaho Democratic Party said Madsen should resign. Here’s what The Idaho Statesman is reporting:
“The director has the governor’s full support and confidence,” said Mark Warbis, Otter’s communications director.
Otter and Madsen agreed after the last extension of federal benefits by Congress in July 2010 that they would not support another extension, Warbis said.
The current extension is set to expire next month. About 12,000 Idahoans are receiving those benefits. Some have already exhausted their jobless benefits.
Even while Idaho’s unemployment rate hovers at 9 percent and an estimated 68,000 people are out of work, there are 17,000 jobs in the state that are going unfilled, Warbis said. Some of that may be caused by people not having the correct skills for the jobs needed, he said. But he said the Department of Labor has several programs to help people get back to work.”
You can read the full story from The Statesmanhere, and listen to Boise State Public Radio’s story here.
These are the stories that got the most views, comments and shares this week. In case you missed one, we put them all in the same place for your reading pleasure! As always, we want to hear from you — comment on the stories and share them with your friends.
Labor Director Opposes Extending Unemployment Benefits: Idaho’s Department of Labor Director Roger Madsen said this week he’s against any further extension of federal unemployment insurance benefits, and encouraged Congress and Idaho’s legislature to vote against an extension. “Ending extended benefits will encourage many to re-enter the workforce where they will have a better chance of finding long-term employment.” Continue Reading →
Before the recession, rural Fairfield, Idaho was planning for growth. Now, it's a different story.
Idaho is one of a handful of states where the unemployment rate has gone up since the national recession ended more than two years ago. Numbers have soared to their highest levels in rural places, among them Camas County in central Idaho. This summer, local unemployment approached 17 percent. That’s a number that has left Fairfield, population 416 and the only town in Camas County, struggling for survival.
To really understand the kind of change that’s gone on in Fairfield since the start of the recession, you have to look back a little further – about a decade. That’s when the town got some gumption, and decided it wanted to grow. A key part of the plan was a business park just east of the town’s main street. Continue Reading →
Department of Labor Director Roger Madsen has been feeling some heat since Tuesday, when he voiced his opposition to the further extension of federal unemployment insurance benefits. On Wednesday, Idaho Democratic Party Chairman Larry Grant called for Madsen’s resignation in a statement guaranteed to raise hackles. Grant’s statement read, in part, “Madsen is advocating for the one percent (as all R’s do). It is actions by the one percent, such as these, that threw workers from the 99 percent into unemployment in the first place.”
This morning Director Madsen issued a statement of his own, restating his commitment to strengthening the state’s unemployment insurance program. “We are not Democrats or Republicans at the Idaho Department of Labor,” he said. “We respect all Idahoans including the employed, the unemployed and the state’s business owners.”
“They wouldn’t even look at or consider me unless I had a four-year degree.”
The Idaho Department of Labor estimates nearly 70,000 people in the state don’t have jobs. That doesn’t include thousands more who are either underemployed, or have stopped looking for work.
Justy Thomas is part of the statistic. She lost her job in the mortgage industry in 2007, just as the housing market started to show signs of crumbling. She was 34 years old then, and like so many in her situation, was at a crossroads. Continue Reading →
J.R. Simplot Company announced today that it will replace three of its existing potato processing plants with a new facility in Caldwell, resulting in a loss of at least 550 jobs. The plants slated for closure are in Caldwell, Nampa and Aberdeen. The company said it expects the new Caldwell facility to be up and running by the spring of 2014.
Francois Nascimbeni / AFP/Getty Images
In Aberdeen, a town of under 2,000 people where Simplot has been processing potatoes since 1973, the news is still sinking in. “It’s a really hard thing to swallow, that we’re losing a big plant like that,” said Mayor Morgan Anderson. The Aberdeen plant employs 290 people, and 111 of them live in the town. “If something doesn’t come into the plant, we lose all those people,” Anderson said. “That’s going to have a great impact on us, plus it’s going to change the local tax base.” Continue Reading →
A recent study published by the progressive think tank Demos paints a bleak picture for 20-somethings in the U.S. The report says almost all young people earn less than the previous generation at the same age. Plus, in today’s world, a college education is becoming a standard requirement in order for 20-somethings to advance up the job ladder.
During a news conference announcing the report, Aaron Smith, executive director of the Young Invincibles — a nonprofit that advocates on behalf of millenials — praised young people, who, he said, strive to make a mark for themselves despite steep economic obstacles.
“The potential of this generation is great,” Smith said. “We’re serving our country in Iraq and Afghanistan. We’re the most technologically savvy, diverse, and tolerant generation in history. And we continue to chase the American dream.” Continue Reading →
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