Snohomish County sees rapid job growth

Snohomish County has added 21,300 jobs this year, making it the fastest-growing economy in Washington state, the state Employment Security Department reported Tuesday.

The jobs added through November left the county with an annual growth rate of 8.7 percent, compared with the state average of 2.7 percent.

The source of the largest number of those jobs was no surprise. The aerospace industry produced 4,700 of the new positions this year as the Boeing Co. continues to hire people to work on the new 787 and on other jet programs with order backlogs, said Donna Thompson, the state’s labor economist for Snohomish County.

Thompson noted that the only sector to lose a significant number of jobs so far this year was financial services. She noted that the nation’s credit crunch has prompted a loss of 600 local jobs through November.

Looking at last month alone, the county’s jobless rate held at 4.2 percent, the same number reported in October.

Both the aerospace and retail areas hired 600 additional workers in November.

“Aerospace added 600 jobs as Boeing continued hiring workers to assemble the 787 Dreamliner,” Thompson said. “Retail trade also added 600 workers as shoppers crowded into the malls for a little holiday shopping.”

Thompson said November also saw a drop of 400 employees at temporary help agencies. Typically that sector is a good indicator of whether businesses are growing or cutting back.

The county also lost 600 workers at restaurants and bars, reflecting a national trend that some economists say is being sparked by higher gasoline prices. “When consumers pay more for gas, they are making up the difference by purchasing groceries and eating at home instead of eating out,” she said.

Thompson noted that the drop in restaurants and bars was offset a little by an increase of 100 new positions at food and beverage stores.

Statewide the unemployment rate was 4.6 percent, a rise of four-tenths of a percent from October.