Tri-City jobs still looking strong
By Pratik Joshi, Herald staff writer

The Tri-City economy has done better than the state at hanging onto jobs as the national economy slows.

The Tri-Cities gained about 3,400 jobs over the last 12 months, an increase of 3.7 percent, although it lost about 300 nonfarm jobs in October, chiefly in areas affected by the national economic slide.

The state lost more than 23,000 nonfarm jobs last month and saw a decline of 20,500 nonfarm jobs for the year, a dip of 0.7 percent, primarily because of temporary job losses from the Boeing Machinists strike. If the effects of the Boeing strike are excluded, the state grew jobs by about 0.12 percent annually, the State Employment Security Department reported Tuesday.

Major annual gains in Tri-City jobs came in food processing, retail trade, professional and business services, food services and government, said Dean Schau, regional labor economist for the state agency.

Last month's job losses were related to the slowdown in construction and the leisure and hospitality industries. There's nothing to worry about, Schau said. Despite seasonal swings, the Tri-Cities is on a sound footing, he said.

"Our economy is based on the production of food and energy," he added.

Food processing has added more than 700 jobs a year on average since 2000, and development of the area's wine industry has helped complement the economic growth, Schau said.

The Tri-Cities has continued to be a magnet for job seekers. In October 2007, the labor force in Benton and Franklin counties totaled 121,260 people, which increased to 125,540 in September and to 126,630 in October. The labor force growth outpaced gains in total employment, Schau said. That explains a slight increase in the jobless rate from 4.8 percent in September to 5.3 percent last month.

Monthly job gains in October were reported in retail and government jobs, mostly education. The retail sector added 100 jobs in October, expanding to 11,700 workers.

Jobs in local school districts grew to 13,200 last month, up 600 from September. State government jobs -- mostly in higher ed and in corrections -- remained steady in October, but showed an annual gain of 200.

Professional and business services, which include architectural and engineering jobs at Hanford, totaled 21,100 jobs in October, a net increase of 700 over last year.

Last month, the health and food services sectors each lost about 100 jobs. But over the year, the health sector gained 200 jobs and food services added 400 jobs. One shouldn't read too much into the monthly dip, Schau said, adding that annual job data is a better economic indicator.

Even in the best of the times, it's not unusual for some sectors to experience a sudden decline, he said.

The transportation, warehousing and utilities sector and financial services held steady over the month.

Agriculture jobs declined from 13,800 in September to 12,600 in October. That's seasonal, said Candice Bluechel, business services outreach manager for WorkSource Columbia Basin. Though employers are still looking for truck drivers and warehouse workers, not many jobs are being advertised at WorkSource, she said.

The Tri-Cities has been stable, but the retail market's performance during the holidays will be a telling sign for the future, Bluechel said.

Schau said a strong U.S. dollar could cause some retrenchment in food processing, and there might be job losses in the financial sector and the recreation and hospitality industry in keeping with national and statewide trends.

"But we are going to be OK," he said.

A similar message came from Mary Ayala, chief economist for the state Employment Security Department. Despite the state's 6.3 percent unemployment rate in October, up from 5.8 percent in September, and less than 2 percent job growth in the state over the year, the economy is in better shape than it was in after 9/11 when Washington saw 25 consecutive months of job losses, she said.