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Washington, Idaho jobless rates climb

June 16, 2009, 4:12 pm

Unemployment is up to 9.4 percent in Washington state because of a decrease in available jobs, the Washington Employment Security Department announced Tuesday.

The state unemployment rate in April was 9 percent and the recent .4 percent spike has tied Washington with the national unemployment rate of 9.4 percent.

Unemployment rates in Whitman County are at about 5.3 percent with 20,160 employed out of a job force of 21,280. The Whitman County unemployment rate was about 4.4 percent in 2008.

Mary Ayala, chief economist for the Employment Security Department said small spikes in unemployment rates are to be expected until the national economy levels out.

“We’re losing jobs,” she said. “Before you can see a turning point in the economy, you have to see reduced job losses. Sooner or later, the reduced job losses have to turn into gains.”

The news is similar in Idaho as the state unemployment rate jumped to 7.8 percent in May, up from 7 percent in April — the highest rate in 21 years. The unemployment rate in May 2008 was 4.5 percent.

In Latah County, the unemployment rate decreased to 5.3 percent in May compared to the 5.5 percent for April.

“Month-to-month changes a lot of times can just be noise” and statewide trends are the most important, said Bob Fick, a spokesman for the Idaho Department of Labor.