Iowa's May unemployment rate drops to 10%

Iowa’s unemployment rate was 10% in May, down from April but still remarkably high as many businesses and organizations curtailed operations due to the coronavirus.

Iowa Workforce Development reported Friday that the May unemployment rate was down from 11% in April but was more than triple the 2.7% rate in May 2019.

Beth Townsend, the director of the agency, noted the number of unemployment claims has declined, indicating more people are returning to work.

The number of unemployed Iowa residents dropped from 188,000 in April to 168,100 in May. The U.S. unemployment rate for May was 13.3%.

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