The Real Reasons Unemployment Is Up In Oregon

Share

By Kyle Trompeter

Summary

“In Umatilla County, we're seeing an employment decline, but the labor force is increasing, which is not typical of a recession period,” said Worksource Oregon’s Tony Wendel.

Story Published: Jul 9, 2009 at 5:14 PM PST

OREGON - “In Umatilla County, we're seeing an employment decline, but the labor force is increasing, which is not typical of a recession period,” said Worksource Oregon’s Tony Wendel.

Looking for a job? Take a stroll into any Worksource. It's bound to be crowded. Finding a job is hard enough, but in Umatilla County, it's like finding a needle in a haystack. The reason is more people looking for work.

“I think the competition for jobs is fiercer than it usually is. We've done recruitments recently for some large employers and they certainly have had a large applicant pool to choose from,” said Worksource Oregon’s Joe Eddy.

When you look at the numbers, those eligible for work is up 1,500 this May from the same time last year. If they can't find work, they hit the unemployment line, leading to jobless numbers jumping by over 2,000.

“It takes you by surprise a little bit. A lot of times during the recession, it's a time when people take advantage of educational and training opportunities. If there aren't jobs available, it’s a good time for them to build up their skill levels so they are ready when the jobs do return,” said Eddy.

Worksource says there are a few reasons for the spike. They see more people moving in looking for work, more moms re-entering the job world and more people coming out of retirement. A small slice of why competition is tough, but it could be worse.

“The thing is, compared to the rest of the state Umatilla County is not doing that badly,” said Wendel.

The state level is at 12.4, so Umatilla isn't quite there - yet.