Average annual wages in Clark County of $39,450 grew at a somewhat weaker pace than the statewide average of nearly 5 percent last year.

Wages across the state averaged $45,023 in 2007, up from $42,888 in 2006, according to the state’s Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.

Clark County ranked No. 7 among Washington’s 39 counties with an average annual wage of $39,450, up 3.78 percent from 2006.

A weaker wage increase here is likely tied to the layoffs in the paper-manufacturing sector.

While the state’s overall pay increase is good news for the region’s economy, there were some negative aspects to the report. For instance, some 48 percent of all jobs in the state were identified as in the 10 lowest-paying industries, ranked by average annual earnings. Of the 2,926,239 jobs tallied in 2007, only 4.8 percent of those jobs were in the three top-paying industries.

The Microsoft factor

Information services, led by such employers as Microsoft, generated the highest average wages in Washington  at $96,241. Businesses operating in that sector include publishing, broadcasting, Internet services and telecommunications.

Other top-paying industries were company and enterprise management, averaging $86,943, and utilities, averaging $73,740.

The report said rankings remained relatively consistent in the bottom-paying industries in 2007: accommodation and food services at $16,017; agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, $23,412; and other services, $24,387.

The quarterly census of wages report uses information from wage-and-hour reports that employers are required to submit to the employment security department and includes federal employment. As such, it represents a more complete picture of average wages in Washington, although it does not include jobs that are not required to be covered by unemployment insurance, such as sole proprietorships, said state analysts.

County-by-county wages

Employment and wage information also is available by county. King County posted the highest average wage in both 2007 ($56,217) and 2006 ($53,490). In 2007, Snohomish County posted the second-highest average ($45,448), with Benton County in Eastern Washington a close third at $43,786. Benton County boasts jobs tied to the Hanford nuclear reservation, where high-paid scientists are employed. Thurston and Pierce counties ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in 2007.

The next five counties in order of average wage were Kitsap, Clark, Cowlitz, Pend Oreille and Whitman.

The 10 counties with the lowest average annual wages in 2007 were Okanogan, Douglas, Pacific, Asotin, Adams, Wahkiakum, San Juan, Lincoln, Skamania and Jefferson.

Details by industry and county are available online at www.workforceexplorer.com, under Current Economic Conditions.