Washington’s economy lost an estimated 35,900 jobs (seasonally adjusted) in October even as the monthly unemployment rate decreased slightly to 4.7%.
Anneliese Vance-Sherman, chief labor economist for the Washington Employment Security Department attributed some of the job losses to the now-resolved strike by Boeing machinists.
Aerospace employment dropped by 31,000 in October. But despite those changes, the unemployment rate dipped only slightly.
The manufacturing, leisure and hospitality, and other services industries experienced the largest job losses from September to October. Government, education and health services, and information led statewide employment growth during that same time.
The unemployment rate has hovered between 4.7% to 4.9% since March 2024. For comparison, the unemployment rate stood at 3.8% in October 2023.
The national unemployment rate remained at 4.1% from September to October.
