Oregon's unemployment rates
slip to three year lows

The heavy rains and flooding that have inundated large areas of western Oregon in the past week also flooded the offices of WorkSource Oregon in Salem, delaying the employment department’s latest employment estimates for the month of December.  But when floodwaters finally receded, several bits of good news emerged.

In December, the state’s unemployment rate slipped to 8.9 percent, the lowest levels in three years.  This means 177,918 Oregonians were still looking for work last month compared to 231,821 who were unable to work in June 2009 when unemployment in Oregon spiked at 11.6 percent.

The private sector in the Portland metropolitan region is leading the state’s economic recovery with nearly 17,000 jobs added to the payroll between 2010 and 2011, while government employment fell in all three counties by a total of 1,700 jobs.    Of the 17,800 jobs created statewide in the past year, 85 percent have been concentrated in Clackamas County (+1,000), Multnomah County (+6,800) and Washington County (+7,400).

According to Jill Cuyler, the state workforce analyst in Washington County, “December 2011 total nonfarm employment was up 3.1 percent from December 2010 (private employment was up by 3.8 percent) fueled largely by job gains in professional and business services; trade, transportation and utilities; manufacturing; construction; and educational and health services. Government accounted for the majority of job losses. Seasonally adjusted, unemployment was 7.4 percent in December 2011 compared to 8.6 percent one year ago.”

The unemployment rate in the Portland metropolitan region has virtually flat-lined for the past eight months, but remains 1.5 percent lower in all three counties than we endured a year ago. 

According to WorkSource Oregon and the Washington Department of Employment Security, the December unemployment rates in our region were as follows:

For the latest data from five counties across the Portland metropolitan region, please see Westside Economic Alliance’s Tri-County Economic and Demographic Indicators, and the regional Prosperity Index.