Regional news

Regional labor market information

Figure 1.

North central, seasonally adjusted data	Apr-26 (P)	Mar-26 (R)	Apr-25 (B)
Civilian labor force	53,973	53,809	54,323
Total employment	52,008	51,923	52,219
Unemployment	1,965	1,886	2,104
Percentage of labor force unemployed	3.6%	3.5%	3.9%
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine	P – Preliminary	R – Revised	B – Benchmarked

• Unemployment levels in April 2026 were lower than a year ago in Clearwater, Idaho and Nez Perce counties while being essentially flat in Latah and Lewis counties. Idaho and Latah counties had small job gains in April compared to one year ago while the remaining counties reported minimal declines.

Figure 2.

North central Idaho job postings	Apr-26	Apr-25
Unique postings	2,712	2,119
Days posted	28	30
Number of employers	589	403
Average hourly wage	$25.57	$28.00
Percentage of postings with advertised wage	41%	37%
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• Job posting comparability between 2025 and 2026 is significantly affected by a change in internal processes implemented by Lightcast during mid-2025. Compared to statewide job postings, north central postings averaged five more days of median posting duration.

Figure 3.

Top 10 occupations by unique job postings in north central Idaho	Postings, Apr-26	Postings, Apr-25
Registered Nurses	227	178
Retail Salespersons	85	67
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	67	25
Physical Therapists	56	57
Occupational Therapists	52	24
Customer Service Representatives	47	27
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers	44	31
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	43	36
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	42	17
Medical and Health Services Managers	35	21
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations continue to have the highest number of job postings in the region followed by sales occupations.

Figure 4.

Top 10 industries by unique job postings in north central Idaho	Postings, Apr-26	Postings, Apr-25
Healthcare and Social Assistance	458	333
Administrative and Support, Waste Management and Remediation Services	420	396
Retail Trade	247	176
Educational Services	208	263
Manufacturing	171	115
Accommodation and Food Services	138	93
Finance and Insurance	129	135
Wholesale Trade	72	29
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services	65	36
Information	54	14
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• Job posting levels in April 2026 were mixed compared to the previous month as the region had higher postings in retail and manufacturing offset by decreases in healthcare and education.

Figure 5.

Top 10 hardest-to-fill occupations in north central Idaho	Median duration, Apr-26	Unique postings, Apr-26
Postsecondary Teachers	53	23
Cashiers	52	25
Secondary School Teachers, except Special and Career/Technical Education	47	15
Industrial Engineers	41	14
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	39	67
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers	36	44
Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	36	32
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General	36	23
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical and Executive	34	15
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	32	43
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• By occupational group, the north central region is experiencing the longest durations in filling positions within building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations (at 37 days) along with life/physical and social science occupations (at 33 days).

Regional news

• The north central region reported 32 average weekly initial unemployment insurance claims and 242 average weekly continuing claims during April 2026. Initial claim volume decreased 13% from the previous month and 6% from the 34 average weekly initial claims filed in April 2025. Continuing weekly claim volume in north central Idaho decreased 24% from March 2026 and 36% from the 378 average weekly claims in April 2025. Weekly volume for statewide initial claims decreased 15% from March 2026 and continuing claims also decreased 31% from April 2025. Source: Idaho Department of Labor

Idaho County

• Idaho County offered public tours of the newly completed jail that can accommodate up to 52 inmates. Source: KLEW

• Legacy Beef held a grand opening in its new 4,000 square foot USDA approved meat processing facility in Grangeville. Source: Idaho County Free Press

Latah County

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture reinstated the previously awarded $59 million Innovative Agriculture and Marketing Partnership Program grant through the University of Idaho. The program will include the hiring of four professional staff, five graduate students and a postdoctoral researcher. Source: University of Idaho

• The University of Idaho and Hiroshima University in Japan created the Microchip Engineering and Security Alliance (MESA) to fill demand for global engineers in semiconductor and artificial intelligence industries. Starting in fall 2026, students in the program will complete the first two years at Hiroshima University and transfer to the University of Idaho’s Moscow campus to complete their degrees. Source: University of Idaho

Nez Perce County

• Walker’s Furniture plans to open in the former Sylvan Furniture location in downtown Lewiston by mid-June. This will mark the Spokane furniture store’s third Idaho showroom along with Coeur d’Alene and Sandpoint. Source: Lewiston Tribune

• American Cruise Lines christened its newest boat American Encore at the Port of Lewiston. The American Encore is the sixth boat operated by American Cruise Lines on the Snake and Columbia river system. Source: Lewiston Tribune

• The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) closed the Lower Lewiston Port of Entry weigh station to modify commercial vehicle services and provide public restrooms. The location is expected to remain under construction through early 2027. Source: ITD

• Oregon Container Terminal and the Port of Lewiston announced a joint plan toward reintroducing container shipping along the Columbia-Snake River system along Marine Highway M-84. The Port of Lewiston previously accommodated container shipping services from 1978-2015. Sources: Daily Fly and Lewiston Tribune

Regional openings

• Ashley Furniture, Moscow

• The Yarn Underground under new ownership, Moscow

• Haus of Wellness, Lewiston

• Megan’s Place indoor playground, Lewiston

• Dam Cafe, Ahsahka

• Idaho County Freight, White Bird

• Paws by the Salmon River Boarding & Rescue Center, Lucile

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This Idaho Department of Labor project is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor for SFY26 as part of the Workforce Information grant (41%) and state/nonfederal funds (59%) totaling $860,595.

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