New figures from the Oregon Employment Department signal a different story than the one you may be hearing nationally: That people are out of work and that the economy is suffering. Here in Oregon, it appears to be the opposite.
According to data released today, Oregon’s unemployment rate dropped to 4.0 percent for the month of February 2017—down from 4.3 percent in January. That marks the lowest unemployment rate since “comparable records” began being kept in 1976, according to the employment department.
Oregon’s growth rate continues to increase at about three percent—far faster than the U.S. growth rate of 1.6 percent.
According to the Employment Department, just three industries cut jobs over the past year: Mining and logging, wholesale trade and manufacturing. At the same time, the jobs growth has been largest in government, health care and social assistance, manufacturing and construction since January.
This article appears in Mar 15-22, 2017.
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