Des Moines Register: Iowa’s unemployment rate in June returned to its pre-pandemic level for the first time since the sharp recession that followed the March 2020 lockdowns, another sign that the state’s labor market is continuing to recover. Led by hiring in restaurants and local governments, payrolls in the state increased  5,100 from May to June, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly survey of employers released today. The strong showing dropped Iowa’s unemployment rate to 2.6% from 2.7% in May. The rate is now back to where it stood in February 2020, weeks before government-enforced shutdowns.