December Employment Update

Harney County’s nonfarm payroll employment was unchanged over the year. The public sector added 10 jobs while the private sector dropped 10. Local government (+40) was the bright spot for the county while education and health services (-40) led losses. Moving into the new month, nonfarm payroll employment fell by 70 as federal government (-30) let go of more seasonal help and small cuts were made across the board. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose 0.5 percentage point from the previous year’s mark to reach 6.4 percent. The raw unemployment rate moved up to 6.0 percent from 5.5 percent one year ago. The civilian labor force grew by 114 for the year to reach 3,516 in November 2017.

Source: WorkSource Oregon: https://www.qualityinfo.org/documents/10182/73818/Employment+in+Eastern+Oregon?version=1.38