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Using monthly economic data from September to December 2025, the Employment Security Department is providing a quarterly look at the Washington labor market. This quarterly report includes current labor market conditions, unemployment insurance claims, nonfarm employment information and a spotlight on the December 2025 results of the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), the last monthly JOLTS data set as the result will be posted in an annual series beginning in 2026.
Here are some key highlights of current labor market conditions in Washington state:
- The statewide unemployment rate increased from 4.5% in September to 4.6% in November and 4.7% in December 2025. Because data could not be collected during 43-day federal government shutdown October labor force estimates are not available.
- Washington employers collectively added 6,200 jobs during the fourth quarter of 2025 and shed 6,600 jobs over the year. Employment growth effectively stalled throughout 2025.
- Education and health services added the most jobs over the quarter and over the year.
- Labor turnover in Washington decreased in 2025.
The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council estimated in its November forecast that the unemployment rate will remain in the mid- to high-4% range for the next few years. The November 2025 forecast estimates the average annual unemployment rate for Washington will be 4.41% in 2025, rising to 4.66% in 2026 and 4.99% in 2027 before dropping to 4.97% in 2028 and 4.79% in 2029. The revised unemployment rate projections are higher than those presented in the September forecast.
The labor force participation rate, or the proportion of age-eligible population in the labor force, in December 2025 was estimated at 62.5%. Labor force participation had been declining since 2023 but expanded in the final quarter of 2025 from 62.1% in September to 62.5% in December.
Read the full quarterly report here.