Oregon's Employment Situation: July 2010

Today, the Oregon Employment Department released employment figures and the unemployment rate for July. The unemployment rate remained essentially unchanged, at 10.6 percent from June's rate of 10.5 percent. For the most recent nine months, the state unemployment rate has been between 10.5 percent and 10.7 percent. Even though we've seen little movement in the unemployment rate in recent months, Oregon's July rate declined significantly over the previous year (11.4% in July 2009).
Oregon's seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment dropped by 3,000 in July, following a revised gain of 1,800 in June. Three major industries showed large job declines: government (-5,200), educational and health services (-2,600), and financial activities (-900). The losses were partially offset by notable gains in several industries, including construction (+3,500), professional and business services (+700), and manufacturing (+500).

Local education employment dropped to 83,000 in July, which was 4,100 below its year-ago level. Construction employment reached 69,100 in July, and now sits well above its low point of 64,000 in February. The industry has added jobs in each of the past five months.

For all the details on Oregon's employment situation for July, see the full press release.