Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in June was 2.7%, the same as it was in April and May, Iowa Workforce Development reported today.

The state’s labor force participation rate increased to 68.7% in June, the fourth consecutive monthly increase, the report showed. In June 2022, the labor force participation rate was 68.3%.

“Nearly all Iowans who entered the labor force in June did so by finding a job – that’s encouraging news for job seekers and the health of the state economy as a whole,” Beth Townsend, Iowa Workforce Development’s executive director, said in a prepared statement.

Overall, 46,300 Iowans were unemployed in June; in June 2022, 44,100 Iowans were unemployed.

Iowa’s total nonfarm employment was 1,595,700 last month, up slightly from May when nonfarm employment totaled 1,595,300.

Several sectors shed jobs in June, including construction, which lost 1,700 jobs and professional and business services, which lost 1,400 jobs.

Sectors that gained jobs included leisure and hospitality (3,200 new jobs) and education and health services (1,000 new jobs).

The U.S. unemployment rate in June was 3.6%, down slightly from May when it was 3.7%.