EVERETT — Snohomish County kept unemployment at bay by adding about 800 jobs in June, officials said Tuesday.
“Basically, what I see is we’re holding our own,” Donna Thompson, a labor economist for the state Employment Security Department, said Tuesday.
The unemployment rate in Snohomish County remained at 4.5 percent, unchanged from last month.
Statewide, unemployment rose slightly in June, rising from 5.3 percent in May to 5.5 last month. The number of jobs stayed about the same, meaning the increase came from more job seekers entering the market.
In the county, there were an estimated 262,700 workers in June. The Boeing Co. and other aerospace workers added 400 positions, as did local government. Restaurants and bars added 300 and retail added 200. The construction industry also added 200 jobs, growing for the first time this year.
“Take away aerospace and construction and there wasn’t a lot else moving,” Thompson said.
Losing jobs were professional and business services, which dropped 300 jobs, and health services, which lost 200.
Thompson noted that the government stimulus checks have been credited nationwide with added jobs in June in retail and restaurants. “People get a little bit of money in their pocket and they eat out,” she said.
In Island County, the jobless rate grew from 5.4 percent in May to 6.3 percent in June.
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