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OLYMPIA – June continued the steady beat of job growth in Washington, with an estimated gain of 10,200 jobs, seasonally adjusted, according to the state’s Employment Security Department.

During the same period, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged, at an estimated 8.3 percent. 

“We’re gradually building momentum on the job front,” said Mark Berreth, a labor economist with Employment Security.  “We’ve now regained more than half the number of jobs we lost during the recession.”

From the employment peak in February 2008 to the low point in February 2010, the state lost approximately 205,000 jobs.  With June’s job gains, Washington has regained an estimated 111,400 jobs since February 2010, including a gain of about 123,600 private-sector jobs and the loss of 12,200 public-sector jobs. 

Industry sectors that added the most jobs in June were professional & business services, up an estimated 5,000 jobs; manufacturing, which gained 3,600; leisure & hospitality, up 2,000; retail trade, up 1,700; wholesale trade, up 1,500; transportation, warehousing & utilities, up 800; and information, which added 500 jobs.

Industries that lost jobs included education & health services, down an estimated 2,500 jobs; government, which lost another 1,800 jobs; financial activities, down 600; and construction, down 300.

Within the government sector, federal employment in Washington dropped by 500 jobs, state agencies lost an estimated 1,100 jobs, public higher education added 300 jobs, local government lost 600 jobs, and K-12 schools gained about 100 jobs. 

In June, an estimated 293,200 people (seasonally adjusted) in Washington were unemployed and looking for work.  That includes 144,855 who claimed unemployment benefits last month.

Also in June, 4,584 unemployed workers ran out of unemployment benefits, bringing the total to 101,028 since extended benefits were activated in July 2008.

WorkSource remains an excellent resource for unemployed workers who want to spruce up their résumés and their job-seeking skills. WorkSource centers also offer skill assessments, referrals to job training, and access to free online courses. 

Locations of local WorkSource offices are listed online at go2worksource.com and in the blue pages of local telephone books.

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• Full report at https://fortress.wa.gov/esd/employmentdata/reports-publications/economic-reports/monthly-employment-report
• Employment/economic information – esd.wa.gov/employmentdata
• State and local trends - https://fortress.wa.gov/esd/employmentdata/reports-publications/regional-reports/numbers-and-trends
• Employment Security – esd.wa.gov
• WorkSource - go2worksource.com

Broadcast version

Although Washington’s unemployment rate remained unchanged in June – at eight-point-three percent – the state added more than ten-thousand jobs. 

Most of the growth was in professional-and-business services, which gained an estimated five-thousand jobs.  

Manufacturing also made a strong showing, adding 36-hundred jobs last month – while and leisure-and-hospitality added two-thousand jobs.  

The state has now regained more than half the jobs it lost during the recession.