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| Oregon statewide unemployment rate - October 2009 | ||
| 10/12/2009 | ||
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Contact: David Cooke, Economist Oregon Employment Department (503) 947-1272 david.c.cooke@state.or.us Oregon’s Employment Situation: September 2009 Oregon’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 11.5 percent in September from the revised August figure of 12.0 percent. This was the lowest rate since the rate was 10.7 percent in February, and was down from the high of 12.2 percent in May. Oregon’s unemployment rate was 6.8 percent in September 2008. The U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 9.7 percent in August and 9.8 percent in September, its highest level in 26 years. In September, Oregon’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment dropped by 10,300 jobs, following a loss of 7,400 (as revised) in August. Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data) In September, four major industries posted seasonally adjusted job losses of more than 1,000: government (-4,400); trade, transportation, and utilities (-3,900); educational and health services ( 1,900); and leisure and hospitality (-1,300). Two of the other major industries posted gains: professional and business services (+2,200) and construction (+1,000). Government added only 4,700 jobs in September as back-to-school employment was less robust than is typical. The typical seasonal upturn in government called for a gain of 9,100. Local government education was the primary reason for the tepid hiring. This industry is down 3,200 jobs since September 2008. Community colleges are reporting high levels of enrollment, but many K through 12 schools have been experiencing substantial budget pressure resulting in relatively lower employment totals. Trade, transportation, and utilities cut 2,300 jobs when a gain of 1,600 is the typical seasonal pattern. Wholesale trade cut 700 jobs, following a gain of 1,200 in July. Over the second and third quarter of 2009 wholesale trade has neither gained nor lost much ground, following steep job declines during the fourth quarter 2008 and first quarter 2009. Retail trade continued to trend downward on a seasonally adjusted basis. Retail is now close to its lowest seasonally adjusted job level since early 1998. Since September 2009, all of the published retail industries are down by substantial margins. Each of these eight components have cut jobs by between 900 and 2,700 in that time. Transportation, warehousing, and utilities seemed to have been stabilizing since May, but0020its drop of 400 in September left employment at 53,800 jobs, a level well below what the typical seasonal pattern would have predicted. Educational and health services added only 3,900 jobs when a gain of 5,800 is the typical seasonal pattern. Private educational services showed an unusually strong summer hiring pattern in July and August, boosting its employment 4,600 higher than the long-term trend line. But in September, employment returned to that trend line, thus showing up as a gain of only 2,500 for the month. Since September 2008, educational services is still up 2,700 jobs, equal to a gain of nearly nine percent. Health care and social assistance grew by 1,400 in September, with gains of 600 jobs in ambulatory health care services and 1,100 in social assistance. Leisure and hospitality continued to shed employment, dropping 5,800 jobs during September when a loss of 4,500 is the normal seasonal pattern. Restaurants took a big hit following their peak summer months. Full-service restaurants cut 800 jobs in September, while limited-service eating places shed 1,600. Arts, entertainment, and recreation shed 2,800 jobs to reach a total of 21,800. This was the lowest September figure since 21,500 were employed in the industry during 2005. Professional and business services posted a gain of 1,500 jobs in September during a time of year when a loss of 700 is the norm. This major industry sector has been relatively flat, on a seasonally adjusted basis, since April. The apparent stability follows a substantial decline in employment between August 2008 and April 2009. Within the larger sector, the industry with the biggest gain for September was administrative and support services, which added 1,900 jobs. Meanwhile, the closely watched employment services added 400 jobs, good for its fifth consecutive monthly increase. Construction added 700 to payrolls during a month where a seasonal loss of 300 is the typical pattern. Building foundation and exterior contractors shot up by 1,500 jobs and is up 200 in the past 12 months. Seasonally adjusted construction employment has been close to 78,000 to 79,000 between April and September. The industry has stabilized during that period, bolstered by several federal and state stimulative programs. Unemployment (Household Survey Data) In September, Oregon’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 11.5 percent. This was a half-point drop from the revised August figure of 12.0 percent. At 11.5 percent, this is the lowest Oregon unemployment rate in seven months. Nonetheless, the rate is still very high by recent historical standards. By comparison, the annual average Oregon unemployment rate for all prior years dating back to 1986 ranged between a low of 4.9 percent in 1995 and a high of 8.1 percent in 2003. The reason that Oregon’s unemployment rate dropped in September was due to a 11,080 drop in the seasonally adjusted number of unemployed individuals. The civilian labor force (seasonally adjusted) was close to being unchanged, dropping by 1,129 over the month. Over the past 12 months, Oregon’s labor force has declined by 6,769 individuals to reach a total labor force of 1,961,312. In September, 211,529 Oregonians were unemployed. In September 2008, 121,240 Oregonians were unemployed. The Oregon Employment Department plans to release the September county and metropolitan area unemployment rates on Monday, October 19th and the statewide unemployment rate and employment survey data for October on Monday, November 16th. — end —
For the complete version of the news release, including tables and graphs, visit: www.QualityInfo.org/pressrelease. For help finding jobs and training resources, visit one of the state's WorkSource Oregon Centers or go to: www.WorkSourceOregon.org. Equal Opportunity program — auxiliary aids and services available upon request to individuals with disabilities. |
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