South Sound unemployment rates continue to fall

The South Sound job market delivered a mixed picture in August — as unemployment data will sometimes do — as both Pierce and Thurston counties saw jobless rates fall even as both counties shed a significant number of jobs.

State Employment Security Department regional economist Jim Vleming said Tuesday that non-farm jobs data and unemployment rates don’t always line up, partly because some people who live in Pierce or Thurston County commute to jobs in other counties.

So that leaves us with the August results, which show that the unemployment rate in Pierce County fell to 6.1 percent last month from 6.4 percent in July, while it fell to 5.6 percent from 6 percent in Thurston County over the same period.

Beyond that, the numbers weren’t so good.

That’s because Pierce County shed 2,000 jobs last month, while Thurston County shed 900 jobs. Both counties likely experienced the lingering effects of the school year coming to an end, cutting jobs in local government and educational services, Vleming said.

And both counties likely will show strong educational jobs growth once the school year is underway and the September data are released.

Jobs data in the past year presented a different picture.

Pierce County has added 11,200 jobs, a job growth rate of 3.9 percent. Construction added 2,600 jobs in the period, Vleming said.

Thurston County in the past year also had a job growth rate of 3.9 percent, adding 4,100 jobs. Professional and business services added 800 jobs, he said.

Seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment was 5.3 percent in August. The national jobless rate was 5.1 percent last month.

This story was originally published September 22, 2015 at 3:30 PM with the headline "South Sound unemployment rates continue to fall."