November 2021

Join us November 18, 3-5 pm at The Herrett Center

Where Economic Development and Growth meet: Taxes, State and Local Governments

Thank you Business Plus

Legacy Leaders for sponsoring this event!

Thank you Idaho Power!

L-R: Shane Jenkins, Rebecca Wildman, Nate Murray, Neil Christensen and Matt Sandberg

Operation Facelift had its best year yet. Operation Facelift inspires community pride, new business development and helps revitalize downtown areas - something we can all win from!

We are greatly disappointed in both the reduction of SkyWest flights to Salt Lake City under Delta, and now the loss of the United Airlines daily flights to Denver. Loss of service is an impact of the pandemic and the difficulty for airlines in this economy. Our air service team assures us that they will be aggressivly seeking new solutions to resolve our air travel challenges.

Zions Bank's October 28 webinar "Navigating the Return of Uncertainty" featured Senior Economist Robert Spendlove sharing economic trends in the labor market, consumer confidence and inflation. Spendlove highlighted Idaho and Utah, particularly with home prices, job gains and industry growth (5:00). His 33-minute presentation is worth watching. Rich Mebius, Zions Wealth Management Portfolio Manager follows Spendlove with third quarter investment markets, returns and market volatility (38:00).

A recent surprise in the job market is the increased quit rate, particularly in Idaho. Spendlove speculates that the labor shortage has made all jobs more competitive so workers are quitting lower paying jobs that are more demanding and are moving to jobs that are higher paying and more flexible. Randy Stapilus in his November 1st column suggests Idaho's right-to-work status is also a factor.

South Central Idaho's Unemployment Situation presented in this October 22 publication from the Idaho Department of Labor:

South Central Idaho's Economic Profile Overview dated October 21 has additional information relevant to our region:

My relative summed up the decline in the labor force participation rate simply stating: "Employees have found a new work-life balance choosing to not work the same job or pace as they did before the pandemic. Their priorities have changed."

His observation is reflected in EMSI's report "The Demographic Drought." This report identifies demographic shortages with Baby Boomers retiring early, women not returning to the workforce, and the under-employment of others. It is a worthwhile read, so if you missed my previous link to th report, here it is again: