Utah added about 49,300 new jobs in the year that ended Feb. 28 for a job-growth rate of 4.4 percent, the Utah Department of Workforce Services reported Tuesday. Utah remains among three states - including Nevada and Arizona - that are adding new jobs at the highest rate nationally.
Utah's strong job growth drove the unemployment rate in February down to 3.8 percent from 4.4 percent in February 2005. Approximately 49,700 Utahns were unemployed in February 2006 compared with 55,300 in February 2005.
Just when it seems like employment growth in the state may start to taper off, another employer announces another expansion. On Friday, high-tech giants Micron Technology Inc. and Intel Corp. announced one of the largest expansions ever for the state when they said their IM Flash Technologies joint venture would add 1,850 new jobs in Lehi paying an average of $50,000 annually over the next 18 months to two years.
"It's really nice to hear top notch companies like Intel and Micron are going to expand in Utah, but what is really nice is the high pay," said Workforce Services economist Mark Knold.
While the Micron-Intel deal is huge, it is not the only high-tech expansion offering high-paying jobs, said Richard Nelson, chief executive of the Utah Information Technology Association.
He said high-tech companies of all sizes are adding good-paying jobs right now, creating a labor market as tight as the one in the mid- to late-1990s, when shortages began to plague some technology employers.
"It's a nice problem to have," he said.
Nelson said it hasn't reached a point where employers are doing whatever it takes to steal workers away from competing companies to fill vacancies. But employers increasingly must recruit workers from outside the state to fill available positions, he said.
As employment has grown in Utah, a number of industries, such as real estate and retail, have benefited, said Knold of the Department of Workforce Services.
Another beneficiary is the rental market. Utah's strong employment growth has pushed population growth higher, which has increased demand for apartments.
As a result, the multifamily vacancy rate along the Wasatch Front is about 6.5 percent, the lowest rate since 2000. Real estate investors are scrambling to find rental properties - both apartment complexes and homes - to stash their cash.
"Investors know the fundamentals of the Utah economy are not only strong now but are supposed to remain strong for years to come," said Mark Millburn of apartment-consulting company EquiMark.
lesley@sltrib.com
