The final three months  of 2009 were a bit more prosperous for citizens of Idaho, according to a report released by the Idaho Department of Labor (IDL).

The report states that earnings for individuals and businesses increased in the final quarter - October, November, and December - of 2009 after several months of declines.  The department estimates that individual income in Idaho rose 1.2 percent in the fourth quarter, while national individual income grew at 0.9 percent.  Estimates say that personal income fell by a little more than 3 percent between mid-2008 and the end of the third quarter in 2009.  It was the first full year income decrease for Idahoans since 1969.

Several sectors of the economy also saw increases in income.  Agriculture, health care, and professional and business services, manufacturing, and finance sectors all contributed to economic growth, while  construction continued to slide.

Bob Fick, director of IDL, said, in an interview with IdahoReporter.com, that the growth income should be seen as a positive sign for Idahoans, but warned that the numbers are not a sure indicator that the recession is coming to an end.  Fick said that though the business and service sector is growing, the state will not necessarily see large increases in job growth.  Employers, while beginning to increase production, are not adding more workers because they continue to be “cautious" about the future course of the economy, according to Fick.  To accommodate the increases in production, employers are beginning to not only restore working hours to employees who took cuts, but are also paying out overtime pay to get work done.