Portland-area job count dipped in September
The unemployment rate for the Portland-Vancouver area remained virtually unchanged in September, at 5.1 percent compared with 5.2 percent in August, the Oregon Employment Department reported today.
The job count slipped by 1,600 seasonally adjusted jobs in September, however, the first monthly drop this year.
The employment data suggest that the Portland-area economy may be cooling more quickly than other parts of the state. Earlier this week, a statewide report from the Employment Department showed a September gain in jobs of a seasonally adjusted 3,900. The Oregon unemployment rate for the month was 5.4 percent.
"We seem to be seeing different hiring patterns," said Amy Vander Vliet, an Employment Department economist.
Vander Vliet, however, cautioned against reading too much into one month's data. She said she expected much of the divergence to work itself out in October. "It could be just a timing thing," she said.
Notably, construction employment in the Portland-Vancouver fell by 700 jobs, ending a 31-month reign as the metro area's fastest growing industry. Wholesale and retail trade also lost jobs, as did high-tech manufacturing. Professional and business services, which includes temp agencies, posted gains, adding 200 workers in September.
The Portland-Vancouver area includes Clackamas, Columbia, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill counties in Oregon and Clark and Skamania counties in Washington.
The job count slipped by 1,600 seasonally adjusted jobs in September, however, the first monthly drop this year.
The employment data suggest that the Portland-area economy may be cooling more quickly than other parts of the state. Earlier this week, a statewide report from the Employment Department showed a September gain in jobs of a seasonally adjusted 3,900. The Oregon unemployment rate for the month was 5.4 percent.
"We seem to be seeing different hiring patterns," said Amy Vander Vliet, an Employment Department economist.
Vander Vliet, however, cautioned against reading too much into one month's data. She said she expected much of the divergence to work itself out in October. "It could be just a timing thing," she said.
Notably, construction employment in the Portland-Vancouver fell by 700 jobs, ending a 31-month reign as the metro area's fastest growing industry. Wholesale and retail trade also lost jobs, as did high-tech manufacturing. Professional and business services, which includes temp agencies, posted gains, adding 200 workers in September.
The Portland-Vancouver area includes Clackamas, Columbia, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill counties in Oregon and Clark and Skamania counties in Washington.
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