August unemployment rates by county

August 2010 unemployment rates for Oregon's counties were released by the Employment Department earlier today.

Unemployment rates in metro areas ranged from a low of 7.1 percent in Corvallis to a high of 14.7 percent in Bend. Corvallis and Portland were the only two metropolitan areas with jobless rates below the statewide rate for August (10.6%). Over the year, the Eugene-Springfield metro area saw the largest decline in its unemployment rate, down 1.4 percentage points to 10.7 percent in August 2010.

Among the counties, Gilliam had the lowest unemployment rate (6.0%) in August 2010. Gilliam County also had the smallest rate the previous month (6.4% in July), and the previous year (6.7% in August 2009). Crook County posted the highest unemployment rate during each of these same months: 17.5 percent in August 2010, 17.6 percent in July 2010, and 17.3 percent in August 2009.

Columbia County saw the greatest improvement over the year among all county unemployment rates. The rate declined from 13.7 percent in August 2009 to 11.7 percent in August 2010. Wheeler County experienced the largest rise in unemployment over the year, from 8.6 percent to 11.6 percent.

For additional stats in your area, visit our local area unemployment page!

All numbers shown here are seasonally adjusted.