Oregon’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.1 percent in January from 5.5 percent in December 2015. The last time Oregon’s unemployment rate was this low was in June 2007. In January 2015, Oregon’s unemployment rate was 5.9 percent.
Oregon’s payroll employment surged by 9,900 in January. Four major industries each added close to 2,000 jobs: professional and business services (+2,100 jobs), construction (+1,900), leisure and hospitality (+1,800), and manufacturing (+1,700).
“Oregon’s labor market is as good as it was during previous expansions,” said Nick Beleiciks, Oregon’s state employment economist. “The unemployment rate is now lower than it was in most of the mid-2000s and nearly as low as in the mid-1990s. Oregon is adding jobs at a faster rate than during the mid‑2000s, and the number of jobs added over the last year is on par with growth during the mid-1990s.”
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