Regional news

Regional labor market information

Figure 1.

South central Idaho, seasonally adjusted data	Jun-26 (P)	May-26 (R)	Jun-25 (B)
Civilian labor force	108,117	110,073	109,336
Total employment	104,275	106,181	105,745
Unemployment	3,842	3,892	3,591
Percentage of labor force unemployed	3.6%	3.5%	3.3%
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine	P – Preliminary	R – Revised	B – Benchmarked

• While the region’s unemployment rate has slightly increased from May 2026, south central’s unemployment rate is still below the state level, which is at 3.7%.

Figure 2.

South central Idaho job postings	Jun-26	Jun-25
Unique postings	1,962	2,456
Days posted	11	12
Number of employers	623	740
Average hourly wage	$23.45	$25.94
Percentage of postings with advertised wage	45%	46%
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• Unique job postings, number of employers posting jobs and the median advertised salary have all decreased year over year from June 2025. These indicators suggest the demand for labor in south central Idaho has softened from June 2025.

Figure 3.

Top 10 occupations by unique job postings in south central Idaho	Postings, Jun-26	Postings, Jun-25
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	128	91
Registered Nurses	80	253
Retail Salespersons	77	77
Cooks, Restaurant	49	7
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers	45	50
Driver/Sales Workers	33	17
Laborers and Freight, Stock and Material Movers, Hand	30	43
Customer Service Representatives	29	50
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products	25	24
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	25	27
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers was the top occupation in south central Idaho by unique job postings in June 2026. The demand for cooks increased 600% year over year from June 2025. The most in-demand occupations are concentrated in retail, food service and production occupations.

Figure 4.

Top 10 industries by unique job postings in south central Idaho	Postings, Jun-26	Postings, Jun-25
Retail Trade	193	228
Manufacturing	176	240
Administrative and Support, Waste Management and Remediation Services	172	431
Healthcare and Social Assistance	162	306
Educational Services	90	90
Transportation and Warehousing	85	74
Wholesale Trade	80	97
Accommodation and Food Services	69	104
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services	61	138
Construction	54	68
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• Retail Trade took the top spot as the largest industry by unique job postings in June 2026. Transportation and Warehousing also saw a 14% increase in job postings year over year from June 2025.

Figure 5.

Top 10 hardest-to-fill occupations in south central Idaho	Median duration (days), Jun-26	Unique postings, Jun-25
Surgical Technologists	28	5
Facilities Managers	27	7
Advertising Sales Agents	27	3
Real Estate Sales Agents	25	0
Massage Therapists	24	0
Radiologic Technologists and Technicians	24	5
Bookkeeping, Accounting and Auditing Clerks	22	11
Human Resource Specialists	22	7
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General	22	38
Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education	22	6
Source: The Conference Board-Lightcast Help Wanted OnLine

• The hardest-to-fill occupations in south central Idaho this month were primarily a mix of health occupations, production occupations and educational occupations.

Regional news

• The Cassia County Joint School District has cut back 17 teaching positions for the upcoming school year. This reduction in staff is due to flat state funding and declining enrollment. Source: KMVT

• Blaine County has approved the development of the McHanville medical building, a two-story 14,000 square foot medical office adjacent to St. Lukes’s Wood River Medical Center. Construction is scheduled to start in spring 2027 and is estimated to be completed in 2028. Source: Idaho Mountain Express

Regional openings

• Market on Main – Gooding

• No Vacancy Soda – Gooding

• Mo’s Frozen Yogurt – Gooding

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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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