September 2019 Employment and Unemployment in Oregon’s Counties

Benton County had Oregon’s lowest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate at 3.3 percent in September 2019. Other counties with some of the lowest unemployment rates in September included Hood River (3.4%), Washington (3.4%), and Multnomah (3.6%). Three counties had unemployment rates at or below the national rate of 3.5 percent. Nine of Oregon’s counties had unemployment rates below the statewide rate of 4.1 percent. Grant County registered the highest unemployment rate for the month at 7.1 percent. Other counties with some of the highest unemployment rates in September were Klamath (6.7%) and Wallowa (6.6%).

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose in all six of Oregon’s broad regions between September 2018 and September 2019. The largest job gains occurred in the Portland area (+1.1%). The Coast (+0.8%), Southern Oregon (+0.8%), the Willamette Valley (+0.7%), Central Oregon (+0. 6%), and Eastern Oregon (+0.4%) also saw employment growth over the past year.

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