Wash.’s May unemployment rate drops to 9.1 percent in May; 8,600 jobs added, most for Census

Wash. unemployment rate drops to 9.1 pct. in May

OLYMPIA, Wash. — The state’s unemployment rate fell to 9.1 percent in May, and while there were about 8,600 new jobs last month, nearly all of them came from a temporary influx of jobs for the Census.

In addition to the 0.2 percentage point drop from April’s jobless rate, the state has added jobs in four of the first five months of 2010, for a net gain of 25,800 so far this year.

“The momentum seems to be shifting in the right direction,” Employment Security Commissioner Karen Lee said in a prepared statement announcing the new numbers Tuesday.

May’s unemployment rate is the lowest the state has seen since May 2009, when the rate was also at 9.1 percent. Washington state’s unemployment rate is still lower than the national rate, which was 9.7 percent for May.

Several industries added jobs in May, and government had the largest net gain of 8,400. If not for the 9,000 Census jobs that were added, government would have had a net loss of 600 jobs.

Other industries that saw gains were construction, and professional and business services, which both added 800; retail trade, which gained 600; and other services, which added 500 jobs. Wholesale trade gained 100 jobs, as did education and health services.

Five sectors saw losses, including financial activities, which lost 1,100; manufacturing, down 600; and leisure and hospitality, down 400. Transportation, warehousing and utilities lost 400 jobs, and information was down 200.

Dave Wallace, chief economist at the Employment Security Department, cautioned that because of the temporary nature of the Census jobs, “it’s a mixed or neutral job picture.”

He said in all, the private sector only saw a net gain of 200 jobs, which is “pretty much treading water.”

“At this stage, we’d certainly like to see more growth than that,” he said.

Washington state had 27,000 fewer jobs last month than it did in May 2009, a 1 percent decrease. Nationally, employment declined by 0.4 percent during that same time.

More than 310,000 people in the state were unemployed and looking for work last month, and more than 265,000 received unemployment benefits from the state.

The highest unemployment rate in the state in May was 13 percent in Clark County in the southwest and Ferry County in the northeast. Whitman County in the east, home to Washington State University, and San Juan County in the northwest had the lowest marks at 6 percent. King County, the state’s largest county, was at 7.7 percent.

Online:

Full report: bit.ly/dww4XQ

Employment Security Department: www.esd.wa.gov