For employers, hiring in October was no more frightening than discount store Halloween costumes, according to the latest report from the state Employment Securities Department.
The county added 300 jobs from September to October, the report said, when adjusted for seasonal hiring trends. The unemployment rate stood pat at 6 percent for the second month in a row, though slightly above the 5.7 percent rate logged in October last year.
“It’s getting downright boring,” regional economist Scott Bailey said jokingly. “Still strong employment growth. Improving labor market. Diversified growth almost across all industries.”
Including the seasonal trends, the leisure and hospitality sector cut 1,300 jobs and, in a sign of seasonal layoffs, construction lost 100 jobs.
“That’s pretty typical. The weather starts to turn in October, and construction projects start to taper off,” Bailey said. “We’ll see that continue through January, February, when the weather starts to turn.”
The holiday rush similarly jump-started hiring in the retail sector, which added 200 jobs. The government sector netted 1,000 jobs thanks to 1,200 jobs in K-12 education as school resumed in the fall. Employers in the private education sector and health care sector grew 100 jobs apiece, as well.
Job growth over the year remained at 6,400 jobs, or 4.2 percent. Nationwide employment grew 1.7 percent, the state of Washington grew 3.2 percent, Oregon grew 3.0 percent and the Portland metro area grew 2.8 percent.
For all of 2016, the construction sector — which includes mining and logging — led growth, growing 10.6 percent by adding 1,200 more jobs since the start of the year. The professional and business services sector grew 5.4 percent with 1,000 jobs, and the financial services sector grew 7.5 percent with 600 jobs.
