Oregon’s jobless rate falls to record-low 4.5 percent

Oregon’s unemployment rate dropped to a record low of 4.5 percent in March — the lowest point since comparable records began in 1976, the state Employment Department reported Tuesday.

Oregon’s February unemployment rate was 4.8 percent. A year ago, in March 2015, Oregon’s unemployment rate was 5.7 percent.

With the U.S. unemployment rate at 5.0 percent in March, and Oregon’s unemployment rate at 4.5 percent, this puts Oregon’s rate half a percentage point below the U.S. rate. The last time Oregon’s rate was half a percentage point below the U.S. rate was in November 1995.

The total number of Oregonians employed in March reached 1.94 million, which was up substantially from 1.84 million in March 2015, the agency said.

The rapid rise in the number of employed is the main driver of an increase in Oregon’s labor force participation rate, which shot up to 62.3 percent in March from a recent low of 60.8 percent in March 2015.

“Rapid job growth and a historically low unemployment rate mean that Oregon’s labor market is stronger than it’s been in decades,” said state employment economist Nick Beleiciks. “Businesses are raising wages to attract the help they need, and it’s working because people are flocking to Oregon’s labor force.”

“Many Oregon labor market indicators have improved markedly over the last few years,” said state Economist David Cooke. “Payroll jobs grew 3.3% over the last 12 months, which is rapid growth and above the U.S. growth rate of less than 2%. The number of people unemployed has dropped substantially as well. Also, people working part-time jobs who want full-time jobs has dropped substantially.

“However, over the longer term — 20 years or so — the labor force participation rate has declined. This is true in Oregon and also nationally,” Cooke said by email to NewsChannel 21.

“Much of the drop in the participation rate is due to demographics as the baby-boom generation ages into retirement years,” he said. “But there has been a big drop in labor force participation for those in their late teens and early 20s.”

“A much larger percentage of these young adults are in school, compared to the 1980s and 1990s,” the economist added. “However, it is unclear what other factors may be influencing this drop in labor force participation among younger people.There are several other factors contributing to the decline in the overall labor force participation rate.”

Oregon’s payroll employment grew by 3,900 in March, following a revised gain of 7,400. The March gain was close to the average monthly pace seen over the past three years. In March, three major industries each added more than 1,000 jobs: health care and social assistance (+1,400 jobs), wholesale trade (+1,300) and professional and business services (+1,200).

Meanwhile, three major industries cut close to 1,000 jobs apiece: private educational services (-1,200 jobs), construction (-900) and manufacturing (-700).

The tightening of Oregon’s labor market is leading to rapidly rising wages, with the average hourly wage up by 4.6 percent over the year. In March, the average wage was $24.45 per hour for Oregon’s private sector payroll employees, which was 10 cents more than the $24.35 in February.

This measure of wages has increased $1.07 per hour, or 4.6 percent, since March 2015 when the average was $23.38 per hour.

Gov. Kate Brown issued the following statement on Tuesday’s report:

” Today , more than 95 percent of Oregonians who want a job have a job,” said Brown. “To continue strong job growth, we must sustain critical investments we’ve made in education and help small businesses grow and expand. We must address the digital divide in rural communities to expand access to the vast resources of the internet.All of Oregon, rural and urban, must have the opportunity to share in this historic economic momentum.”