Jobs are on the rise in Oregon. Unemployment is on the decline. That’s the takeaway from State Employment Department’s just-issued January report.
Oregon employment reached a record level in January, with more than 55 thousand jobs above a year ago. State Employment Economist Nick Beleiciks:
(Beleiciks) “The sectors that added the most jobs were the broad ranging professional and business services, manufacturing, retail trade and construction.”
The construction sector in January benefited from unusually mild weather. Beleiciks says the overall rate of Oregon job growth has steadily accelerated in recent years.
The state unemployment rate dropped to 6-point-3 percent in January, down from 6-point-seven in December and the lowest since July 2008. Oregon has 14 thousand fewer unemployed than a year ago.