Unemployment up in Adams County in 2019
Cheryl Schweizer For Sun Tribune | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 5 years, 3 months AGO
RITZVILLE — Unemployment in Adams County rose in 2019 after dropping in 2018.
Average monthly unemployment for 2019 was 6 percent, compared to 5.4 percent in 2018, according to data from the Washington State Employment Security Department (WSESD). The statewide average monthly unemployment rate for 2019 was 4.5 percent.
The employment security department provided data for 10 years, 2009 to 2019. Since 2010, Adams County average monthly unemployment has always been higher than the statewide average.
Don Meseck, regional labor economist for WSESD, said “the non-farm economy contracted from 5,980 jobs in 2018 to 5,960 jobs in 2019.” That did not, however, wipe out all the job gains from 2018, when Adams County added 180 jobs.
The county’s transportation, warehousing and utilities sector suffered the biggest job losses, going from a monthly average of 400 jobs in 2018 to a monthly average of 370 jobs, a loss of 30 jobs. The county’s wholesale trade sector lost 20 jobs between 2018 and 2019, going from a monthly average of 420 jobs to 400 jobs.
Government is Adams County’s biggest employer, providing 1,760 jobs on a monthly average in 2019, which is unchanged from 2018. The manufacturing sector provides the most private-sector jobs in Adams County, and it accounted for an monthly average of 1,090 jobs in 2019, a 10-job loss from 2018.
Wholesale trade provided a monthly average of 400 jobs, 20 jobs fewer than 2018. The average monthly employment in the retail sector in 2019 was 400 jobs, a 20-job loss between 2018 and 2019.
Education and health services was the biggest growth sector in 2019, expanding from a monthly average of 690 jobs in 2018 to 730 jobs in 2019. The leisure and hospitality sector grew by a monthly average of 10 jobs, from a monthly average of 420 jobs to 430 jobs between 2018 and 2019.
According to employment security department data, most of the job losses occurred between March and November, when measured year-over-year. The job market rebounded a little bit in December, adding a dozen jobs between December 2018 and December 2019.
Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.
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