December 2017 Employment and Unemployment in Oregon’s Counties

Benton County had Oregon’s lowest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate at 3.1 percent in December 2017. Other counties with some of the lowest unemployment rates in December include Hood River (3.2%) and Wheeler (3.3%).

Twelve of Oregon’s counties had unemployment rates at or below the statewide and national unemployment rate of 4.1 percent. Wheeler County saw its unemployment rate improve over the year by 1.2 percentage points, more than any other county. Other counties that saw a large improvement in their unemployment rates were Grant and Wallowa, where the unemployment rates improved by 0.9 percentage point over the year.

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose in all of Oregon’s six broad regions between December 2016 and December 2017. The largest job gains occurred in the Willamette Valley (+2.9%) and Central Oregon (+2.8%). Portland (+2.6%), Southern Oregon (+1.9%), and Eastern Oregon (+1.3%) also saw growth. The Oregon Coast saw a negligible job growth rate of 0.1 percent.

To learn more about the employment situation for your county, click here. To see the full press release, click here.