OLYMPIA — The state Employment Security Department says the average annual wage in Washington increased 1.9 percent last year to $47,153.
The department said today the loss of thousands of low-paying jobs contributed to the raise.
The average is used to compute jobless benefits, so they’ll be going up next month. The minimum weekly benefit will increase by $2 to $135 and the maximum will increase $10 to $570.
The average annual wage also is used to compute employers’ unemployment taxes and workers’ compensation benefits.
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