Unemployment in Snohomish County continued to fall in August, dropping three-tenths of a percentage point to 5.9 percent, the state Employment Security Department reported Tuesday.
But the decline wasn’t due to a big increase in hiring. In fact, just the opposite occurred. The number of nonfarm jobs dropped by 800 some last month, from 216,000 to 215.200. But the number of people on the jobless rolls also fell, lowering the unemployment percentage.
Greg Weeks of Employment Security said both factors were likely caused by summer layoffs of local school district workers, which reduced the number of jobs. Since most of them weren’t actively looking for work, they weren’t listed as unemployed.
“That’s how employment and unemployment can both fall,” Weeks said.
Donna Thompson, local labor economist with Employment Security, noted that in Snohomish County, some 1,500 workers from local school districts were laid off.
Aerospace employment remained flat at about 21,300 jobs.
Retailers added about 400 jobs, and restaurants and bars also added 400, Thompson said.
She noted that throughout the year, the local economy has added about 3,000 nonfarm jobs. The service-related sectors have actually added around 5,000 jobs, but the county has lost 2,100 positions in goods-producing areas.
Unemployment also fell in Island County from 5.8 percent in July to 5.4 percent last month. The labor force in the county totaled 28,900 in August, with 27,300 people working and 1,600 without jobs.
Statewide, the labor force also dwindled, dropping by 42,800 people. The statewide jobless rate also fell to 5.9 percent last month. When adjusted for seasonal factors, however, it rose to 6.2 percent in August, comparable to the national average of 5.4 percent.
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