C. Oregon jobs grow; unemployment rates fall

Job growth continued in September across Central Oregon, while unemployment rates began to show their first sign of improvement in several months, the Oregon Employment Department reported Monday.

Deschutes County job growth outpaced all other counties in Oregon, with employment levels up 5.4 percent from last year. The unemployment rate dropped below 8 percent for the first time since July 2008.

Jefferson County’s unemployment rate dipped to 9.3 percent, the agency said, while Crook County’s rate remained essentially unchanged at 10.1 percent.

Nationally, the September unemployment rate fell to 5.9 percent, while Oregon’s rate was unchanged at 7.1 percent.

Crook County : The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained essentially unchanged at 10.1 percent in September, compared to the revised August rate of 10.2 percent. Over the past year, the unemployment rate dropped significantly from 11.9 percent.

Total nonfarm employment fell by 30 jobs in September; the county typically expects to see a gain of 60 jobs.

Private-sector employment levels dropped as leisure and hospitality saw typical seasonal declines (-60). Government employment rose due to back-to-school hiring in local education.

Crook County’s job growth slowed in September. The over-the-year employment growth rate fell in September to 2.3 percent from 4.1 percent in August. The private sector and public sector were both up from last year with strong gains in construction (+80); wood product manufacturing (+40); and wholesale trade (+30). Losses were primarily concentrated in professional and business services, which shed 50 jobs from last year.

Deschutes County (Bend MSA) : The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Deschutes County began to show signs of improvement in September. The rate fell to 7.9 percent from 8.1 percent in August. Unemployment levels are down significantly from the year-ago rate of 9.1 percent.

Seasonally adjusted job growth accelerated in September; 40 jobs were added when a loss of 710 jobs is the norm this time of year.

Typical seasonal declines began in our tourism industry with leisure and hospitality shedding 940 jobs from August. These seasonal declines were overcome by strong back-to-school hiring in local government education (+1,050).

Deschutes County maintained its fast pace of over-the-year job growth in September. There were over 3,500 more jobs in September compared to this time last year (+5.4%).

Construction continued to see job numbers significantly higher than last year, as well as professional and tourism-related businesses. Schools are hiring again with local government education up by 240 jobs from the start of last school year.

Jefferson County : The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell slightly in September to 9.3 percent from 9.5 percent in August. The rate is down from this time last year, when it was10.4 percent.

Jefferson County gained 160 jobs in September, a larger gain than the 60 jobs typically seen this time of year. These gains can be attributed to strong hiring in local government as the school year began.

Over-the-year job growth continued in September, with the county adding 150 jobs from last year. These gains were split between the private and public sector. Manufacturing (+50) and local government (+40) were responsible for the majority of these gains from last year. There were no significant over-the-year employment losses.

These estimates will be revised as new data from businesses becomes available. The next Central Oregon Employment Situation with preliminary data for October will be released on Monday, November 24 th .