Oregon’s unemployment rate held steady last month.
It remained at 4.1 percent for a third consecutive month. The state Employment Department says February saw strong job gains in retail, construction and health care.
Nick Beleiciks is a state employment economist.
“Oregon’s unemployment rate of 4.1 percent is the same as the U.S. and that’s actually a sign of the relative strength of Oregon’s job market right now. Because Oregon has traditionally had a higher rate than the U.S.”
Beleicks says Oregon is adding jobs at the same rate as its population of working age people is growing.
Recent figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show Oregon had the country's fifth-fastest job growth between January 2017 and January 2018.
It trailed Utah, Idaho, Nevada and Washington.
