Broad Based Job Growth Brings Oregon Unemployment Rate Down. Millions

Transcription

1 NEWS 875 Union Street NE Salem, Oregon PH: TTY-TDD FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 4, 2014 PRESS CONFERENCE PRESENTER: Nick Beleiciks, State Employment Economist CONTACT INFORMATION: David Cooke, Economist (503) Broad Based Job Growth Brings Oregon Unemployment Rate Down Oregon s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stayed at 7.0 percent in January, compared with 7.1 percent in December. The rate was substantially down from its January 2013 level of 8.3 percent. Oregon s unemployment rate has been trending downward over the past four and a half years. The number of Oregonians who were unemployed in January was down by 30,526 over the year as more people found jobs. The number unemployed in January was 148,830, down from 179,356 in January Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data) In January, employment gains were modest. Seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll Percent 12.0 Oregon unemployment rate, seasonally adjusted Millions 1.8 January Labor Market Highlights Oregon's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 7.0 percent in January, substantially lower than the January 2013 figure of 8.3 percent and the lowest level since August Oregon s seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment rose only 1,000 in January, but added 43,800 jobs, or 2.6 percent, over the past 12 months. Three major industries grew more than 4 percent since January Quarterly revisions to the payroll employment estimates showed that employment gains in the second half of 2013 were stronger than originally estimated. Oregon nonfarm payroll employment, seasonally adjusted Oregon Employment Department is an equal opportunity employer/program. Oregon Employment Department es un programa/empleador que respeta la igualdad de oportunidades.

2 Employment Department News Release Page 2 of 4 March 4, 2014 employment grew by 1,000. Construction (+1,700 jobs) and leisure and hospitality (+1,100) were the only major industries that added more than 1,000 jobs, while government ( 1,500) was the only major industry to cut more than 1,000. These payroll employment figures are estimates from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). While January's gains were weak, employment growth over the past 12 months was very strong. Since January 2013, seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment is up 43,800 jobs, or 2.6 percent. The last time jobs were growing faster than the 2.6 percent pace of the most recent 12 months was during July 2004 through October 2006, when jobs were expanding at a 3.0 percent annual pace. Those gains were still a percentage point lower than Oregon s booming economy during 1993 through 1997 when annual job gains were close to 4.0 percent. The gains during the past 12 months have been broad based, with all but one of the major industries expanding. The major industries with the largest percent job gains were construction (+9.4%), leisure and hospitality (+4.5%), and professional and business services (+4.3%). The only industry to decline was financial activities ( 0.9%). Seasonal Expectations and Over the Month Employment Changes December 2013 to January 2014 INDUSTRY Normal Seasonal Movement Unadjusted Change Seasonally Adjusted Change Total nonfarm payroll employment -33,500-32,500 1,000 Total private -30,400-27,900 2,500 Mining and logging Construction -3,300-1,600 1,700 Manufacturing -2,600-1, Trade, transportation, and utilities -12,700-12, Information Financial activities Professional and business services -4,300-4, Educational and health services -3,000-3, Leisure and hospitality -3,300-2,200 1,100 Other services Government -3,100-4,600-1,500

3 Employment Department News Release Page 3 of 4 March 4, 2014 Construction is enjoying a stronger winter season than during any of the past four years. Seasonally adjusted employment rose to 77,000, which was well above the 68,700 recorded in January As demand for residential housing construction has improved, the construction industry is approaching employment levels seen during the early 2000s. Leisure and hospitality is booming. It is up 7,800 jobs, or 4.5 percent in the past 12 months. At 181,300 seasonally adjusted jobs in January, this industry is at a record employment level and has well surpassed its pre recession record of 175,100 in March Many of these job gains have come within the full service restaurants industry, which has added 3,100 jobs since January Professional and business services added 8,900 jobs, or 4.3 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis over the past 12 months. This industry is seeing strong demand for employees in computer systems design, management of companies, employment services, and services to buildings and dwellings. Each of these component industries has added 1,400 jobs or more since January The BLS estimates of monthly job gains and losses are based on a survey of businesses. These preliminary estimates are subject to later revision. Other Labor Force Indicators Due to popular demand, we are adding two labor market indicators near the top of the table at the end of the monthly press release. The labor force participation rate measures the number of people who are employed or unemployed as a share of the civilian noninstitutional population. Oregon s labor force participation rate was 61.2 percent in January and has been relatively stable over the last five months, following a rapidly declining trend during the prior four years. The U 6 measure of labor underutilization includes the unemployed plus marginally attached workers plus those falling into the category part time workers for economic reasons. Individuals who are marginally attached to the labor force are those who were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months but had not searched for work in the four weeks preceding the survey. Persons employed part time for economic reasons were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find full time work. The U 6 rate captures a broader measure of economic hardship than the unemployment rate alone. Oregon s U 6 was 15.9 percent in January. Although this measure is well below its peak of 21.0 percent in June 2009, it has been close to 16.0 percent for the past 12 months. U 6 remains stubbornly high because the number of part time workers hasn t fallen much. The latest estimate for the number of workers employed part time for economic reasons is still high by historic standards, numbering close to 150,000 in January. This tally is down only marginally from its high point of close to 163,000 in the middle of 2009.

4 Employment Department News Release Page 4 of 4 March 4, 2014 Unemployment Rate by Demographics Unemployment rates of the largest demographic groups in Oregon fell during 2013, according to newly released annual average rates by sex, race and ethnicity. Even so, rates for blacks and Hispanics remain high. BLS releases these figures once a year. The figures are published only as an annual average. Next Press Releases The Oregon Employment Department plans to release the January county and metropolitan area unemployment rates on Monday, March 10 th and the statewide unemployment rate and employment survey data for February on Tuesday, March 18 th. The Oregon Employment Department is responsible for releasing Oregon s monthly payroll employment and labor force data. The data are prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The BLS estimates of monthly job gains and losses are based on a survey of businesses. The BLS estimates of unemployment are based on a survey of households and other inputs. The Oregon Employment Department publishes payroll employment estimates that are revised quarterly by using employment counts from employer unemployment insurance tax records. All department publications use this official Oregon series data unless noted otherwise. The department continues to make the original nonfarm payroll employment series available; these data are produced by the BLS and are revised annually. For the complete version of the news release, including tables and graphs, visit: If you need this release in the Spanish language, please contact Starlin Moran at For help finding jobs and training resources, visit one of the state's WorkSource Oregon Centers or go to: Equal Opportunity program auxiliary aids and services available upon request to individuals with disabilities

5 Workforce and Economic Research 2013 Benchmark March 4, 2014 Oregon Current Labor Force and Industry Employment January December January Change From Change From December 2013 January 2013 Labor Force Status Civilian labor force 1,913,612 1,912,308 1,916,674 1,304-3,062 Unemployed 148, , ,356 16,903-30,526 Unemployment rate Unemployment rate, seasonally adjusted Employed 1,764,782 1,780,381 1,737,318-15,599 27,464 Other Labor Force Indicators Labor force participation rate, seasonally adjusted Labor underutilization rate U-6, seasonally adjusted Nonfarm Payroll Employment Total nonfarm payroll employment 1,672,400 1,704,900 1,622,500-32,500 49,900 Total private 1,380,500 1,408,400 1,332,800-27,900 47,700 Mining and logging 7,300 7,500 6, Logging 5,900 6,000 5, Construction 72,400 74,000 64,900-1,600 7,500 Construction of buildings 18,300 18,500 16, ,200 Residential building construction 10,000 10,300 8, ,100 Nonresidential building construction 8,300 8,200 7, ,100 Heavy and civil engineering construction 7,400 8,000 7, Specialty trade contractors 46,700 47,500 41, ,500 Building foundation and exterior contractors 8,200 8,600 7, Building equipment contractors 22,200 22,400 20, ,200 Building finishing contractors 10,900 10,700 8, ,400 Other specialty trade contractors 5,400 5,800 5, Manufacturing 173, , ,300-1,900 2,900 Durable goods 123, , , ,700 Wood product manufacturing 21,000 21,300 20, Sawmills and wood preservation 6,500 6,500 6, Plywood and engineered wood product mfg. 7,800 7,900 7, Other wood product manufacturing 6,700 6,900 6, Primary metal manufacturing 8,100 8,100 8, Fabricated metal product manufacturing 15,300 15,400 15, Machinery manufacturing 11,700 11,800 11, Computer and electronic product manufacturing 36,400 36,400 36, Semiconductor and electronic component mfg. 27,700 27,800 27, Electronic instrument manufacturing 5,200 5,200 5, Transportation equipment manufacturing 10,700 10,700 11, Nondurable goods 50,200 51,300 49,000-1,100 1,200 Food manufacturing 24,800 26,100 23,900-1, Fruit and vegetable preserving and specialty 8,600 8,900 8, Paper manufacturing 4,600 4,600 4, Trade, transportation, and utilities 320, , ,800-12,500 10,400 Wholesale trade 72,000 73,200 69,900-1,200 2,100 Merchant wholesalers, durable goods 32,700 32,700 31, ,100 Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods 26,000 26,600 24, ,100 Electronic markets and agents and brokers 13,300 13,900 13, Retail trade 192, , ,300-9,300 6,200 Motor vehicle and parts dealers 23,100 23,400 22, ,100 Building material and garden supply stores 13,600 13,900 12, Food and beverage stores 39,600 40,500 38, ,100 Clothing and clothing accessories stores 16,300 18,000 16,300-1,700 0 Sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores 9,800 10,600 9, General merchandise stores 41,300 44,500 39,200-3,200 2,100 Miscellaneous store retailers 10,200 10,800 10, Nonstore retailers 6,500 8,500 6,400-2, or2014est.xlsm "CLFIE" Page 1 of 2 David Cooke (503)

6 January December January Change From Change From December 2013 January 2013 Transportation, warehousing, and utilities 55,700 57,700 53,600-2,000 2,100 Utilities 4,400 4,400 4, Transportation and warehousing 51,300 53,300 49,100-2,000 2,200 Truck transportation 17,600 18,100 17, Couriers and messengers 6,900 8,400 6,300-1, Warehousing and storage 6,600 6,700 6, Information 32,800 32,900 32, Publishing industries, except internet 13,700 13,800 13, Newspaper, book, and directory publishers 4,100 4,200 4, Software publishers 9,600 9,600 9, Telecommunications 6,700 6,700 6, Financial activities 90,200 90,900 89, Finance and insurance 55,200 55,600 56, Credit intermediation and related activities 27,200 27,500 27, Insurance carriers and related activities 23,200 23,500 23, Real estate and rental and leasing 35,000 35,300 33, ,300 Real estate 30,100 30,400 28, ,300 Professional and business services 208, , ,000-4,600 9,400 Professional and technical services 82,300 82,400 78, ,000 Legal services 11,600 11,800 11, Architectural and engineering services 12,600 12,900 12, Computer systems design and related services 14,000 14,000 12, ,400 Management of companies and enterprises 38,700 38,800 36, ,900 Administrative and waste services 87,400 91,800 83,900-4,400 3,500 Administrative and support services 82,700 87,000 78,600-4,300 4,100 Employment services 32,800 35,800 30,600-3,000 2,200 Business support services 15,700 17,000 15,600-1, Services to buildings and dwellings 19,000 19,600 17, ,400 Educational and health services 244, , ,500-3,600 6,100 Educational services 35,100 37,200 32,600-2,100 2,500 Health care and social assistance 209, , ,900-1,500 3,600 Ambulatory health care services 76,800 76,700 74, ,100 Hospitals 53,300 53,500 53, Nursing and residential care facilities 46,000 46,400 44, ,300 Social assistance 33,400 34,400 33,200-1, Leisure and hospitality 172, , ,900-2,200 7,600 Arts, entertainment, and recreation 21,900 21,400 20, ,000 Amusement, gambling, and recreation 16,000 15,100 15, Accommodation and food services 150, , ,000-2,700 6,600 Accommodation 19,800 20,100 19, Food services and drinking places 130, , ,400-2,400 6,400 Full-service restaurants 62,000 62,600 58, ,100 Limited-service eating places 55,300 56,600 53,200-1,300 2,100 Other services 58,900 59,400 56, ,100 Repair and maintenance 16,400 16,300 15, Personal and laundry services 13,400 13,600 13, Membership associations and organizations 29,100 29,500 28, ,100 Religious organizations 16,500 16,800 16, Government 291, , ,700-4,600 2,200 Federal government 26,400 27,200 26, State government 82,700 84,100 80,000-1,400 2,700 State education 32,900 34,400 32,300-1, Local government 182, , ,800-2,400 0 Indian tribal 8,300 8,500 8, Local education 97,000 98,800 97,500-1, Labor-management disputes The most recent month is preliminary, the prior month is revised. Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Labor Force Status: Civilian labor force includes employed and unemployed individuals 16 years and older by place of residence. Employed includes nonfarm payroll employment, self-employed, unpaid family workers, domestics, agriculture and labor disputants. Unemployment rate is calculated by dividing unemployed by civilian labor force. U-6 is the total unemployed plus all persons marginally attached to the labor force plus total employed part-time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all persons marginally attached to the labor force. Nonfarm Payroll Employment: Data are by place of work and cover full- and part-time employees who worked or received pay for the pay period that includes the 12th of the month. The data exclude the self-employed, volunteers, unpaid family workers, and domestics. These survey-based estimates are revised quarterly, based on more complete information from employer tax records. or2014est.xlsm "CLFIE" Page 2 of 2 David Cooke (503)