Oregon’s Unemployment Rate Drops to Six-Year Low

This information is from the Oregon Employment Department's January 21, 2015 press release. 

Oregon’s unemployment rate fell to its lowest point in over six years. At 6.7 percent, the unemployment rate is the same as it was in August 2008, right before the worst months of the financial crisis which led to the Great Recession.

Job growth continued at a rapid pace in December, adding 8,200 jobs. The last three months of 2014 added a combined total of 24,300 jobs, which was the largest three-month gain since comparable records began in 1990.

Seven of the major industry sectors added at least 800 jobs in December. It’s rare for so many industries to gain that many jobs in one month. Retail trade added 2,000 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis, which means retailers hired more workers than they usually do during the holiday season.