Washington’s continued job growth has resulted in a June unemployment rate at pre-pandemic levels.
The rate of 3.8% in June was a drop from 4.1% a month earlier, according to preliminary figures released Wednesday by the Washington Employment Security Department. The previous time Washington’s unemployment rate was that low was February 2020, Employment Security economist Paul Turek said in a news release.
In the Seattle metropolitan area, which includes Bellevue and Everett, the June unemployment rate was 3%, the same as in May.
In June the state added 11,900 nonagricultural jobs, including 8,800 jobs in the private sector, according to seasonally adjusted figures released by Employment Security.
Leisure and hospitality, a sector negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, reported 8,900 more jobs in June, including 5,200 for food service and drinking establishments.
Other sectors reporting job gains included education and health services, with 4,600 jobs. Professional and business services reported an increase of 500 jobs.
While the state saw solid job growth overall, some industry sectors have seen declining job numbers. Manufacturing jobs fell by 2,500 over the month. Retail trade also reported a drop of 2,800, including 900 jobs in food and beverage stores.
The information sector, which includes tech jobs, saw a sizable contraction, losing 5,500 jobs between June 2022 and June 2023. Seattle-area tech companies have laid off thousands of workers in recent months.
However, there was robust year-over-year growth in other sectors. Education and health services and leisure and hospitality also reported in June the most job gains year-over-year, with 32,700 more jobs and 25,200 more, respectively. Government was also among the top three sectors for job growth, with 25,600 jobs.
Employment security provides seasonally adjusted figures, which account for occurrences such as holiday hiring, to make month-to-month comparisons. The year-over-year figures are not seasonally adjusted.