This just in from the Employment Security Department: Washington added 12,400 jobs in January — a first since Nov. 2008.

The unemployment rate, meanwhile, went slightly up — from 9.2 percent in December to 9.3 percent in January. (Confused about December’s figure of 9.2 percent? It was originally reported as 9.5 percent, but was adjusted to 9.2 percent during the review process, where they survey more claims.)

Some bad news: “An estimated 359,500 people (not seasonally adjusted) in Washington were unemployed and looking for work in January. More than 305,000 people received unemployment benefits from Washington state in January.”

Gov. Chris Gregoire said in a press release that the news is a positive sign. “We have implemented several strategies to create jobs, and it’s paying off. There is more we can and should do – that’s why I continue to work with leaders at both the state and federal levels to develop additional proposals that will put people to work.

Need to find work? Go here or call 877-872-5627.

Tags: Jobs, unemployment

Unemployment for December rose to 9.5 percent. Construction took the biggest hit, according to the Employment Security Department.

Some potentially good news: “Despite the jump in the unemployment rate, monthly job losses are continuing to decline, according to the Employment Security Department’s chief economist, Dave Wallace. Washington lost an estimated 23,700 jobs in the last six months of 2009 – compared to more than 80,000 job losses in the first six months of the year.”

Despite the increase in unemployment — up from a revised 9 percent in November — the state’s chief economic forecaster, Arun Raha, told me last week not to worry. Why? “If (December is) negative, don’t let that confuse you. I do feel that January through March will be positive.”

Tags: unemployment

Today:

- Gov. Chris Gregoire discussed a package of bills to increase public safety, including one to create a “guilty and mentally ill” conviction.

- Chief economic forecaster Arun Raha told me the state’s out of a recession, and that the next forecast could bring cheers (possibly a joke).

- People all over the world watched a two-hour hearing on decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana.

- The Senate Early Learning Committee heard about how closing the $2.6 billion budget gap can have a negative or positive effect on the 2011-2013 budget — depending on what money is used.

- The House Ways & Means Committee heard testimony from UW, WSU and other universities about the impact of the Book 1 budget. If it passed, more than 1,000 of the 4,000 students at WSU receiving a state need grant would see that help disappear. The remaining 3,000 would see their grant cut in half.

- The state paid out a record $3.97 billion in unemployment claims in 2009. The county that got the biggest chunk of money? King County — their population of more than 121,000 unemployed received $1.1 billion in benefits.

Tags: Day 3, public safety, Revenue forecast, review, state need grant, unemployment

Unemployment insurance rates will increase “sharply” for employers in 2010, from an average of 1.55 percent in 2009 to 2.38 percent in 2010, according to the Employment Security Department.

The change is due to two factors: The Unemployment Trust Fund has been depleted, so the “social-cost” portion of the tax will rise, in ESD’s words, “sharply.” The second factor: Businesses who have laid off employees will see their “experience rate” increase.

On the depletion of the trust fund: Last session, Washington had among the healthiest Unemployment Trust Funds in the nation, with $4.1 billion. The fund was so healthy, the Legislature voted to increase the amount paid out to those who are unemployed. At that time, they did not expect the fund to be depleted to the point that the unemployment tax would increase (the tax increases automatically, according to a formula).

The fund is now at $2.79 billion — enough for 14 months’ of claims. The fund is considered “healthy” by the federal government with 12 months or more of reserves.

If you’re a business registered with the state, you should receive your 2010 tax rate information in the mail. But note: Unemployment taxes paid in January will not be at the new rate, since those are paid on the final quarter of 2009.

Tags: taxes, unemployment

This is a pretty amazing visual demonstration of the national unemployment rate over the past two years.

The good news? Jobless claims fell nationwide last month.

Tags: unemployment

The October unemployment figures have been released, showing an increase to 9.3 percent. September was initially reported as 9.3 percent, and August was initially reported at 9.2 percent, but both were later adjusted down by a couple points after further Employment Security Department analysis.

According to preliminary October results, the state now has 120,000 fewer jobs today than we had at  this time last year.

“Leisure and hospitality was the industry with the largest decline in October, down about 2,900 jobs. Other industries that showed job declines in October were manufacturing, down 2,300; retail trade, down 1,400; aerospace product and parts manufacturing, down 700. Three other industries – transportation, warehousing and utilities, professional business services, and construction – each dropped about 600 jobs.”

The upside: Government added about 900 jobs in October.

 For the full report, go here.

Tags: unemployment

Unemployed people who used WorkSource — a free resource for job-seekers provided by the Employment Security Department, state agencies, colleges and others — are 20 to 37 percent more likely to find work within six months than those who don’t use the service, according to a study released today. The study is based on 16,000 participants in 2007 and 2008.

The study participants who used WorkSource were also on track to earn between $2,500 and $3,000 more this year than those who didn’t use the service.

At a press conference touting the findings, Ray Godwin, who’d been laid off from the Seattle Times, said the job-search assistance was key. “WorkSource staff helped me map out a strategy for my job search, create a targeted résumé and prepare for job interviews,” he said.

Find out more about WorkSource here. TVW will air the press conference this week.

Tags: unemployment, WorkSource

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate jumped in September to 9.3 — up from 9 percent in August. (Originally, August’s unemployment was reported by the Employment Security Department at 9.2 percent, but was revised to 9 percent.)

That’s 16,000 non-agricultural jobs — gone in September.

For the full report, go here.

From the press release: K-12 schools were a significant portion of both the August job growth and the September job losses. Employment Security economists attribute the large swings to seasonal-adjustment calculations, which tend to smooth out normal, seasonal changes and amplify unexpected growth or losses.

Tags: unemployment

The state’s Employment Security Department released its latest unemployment numbers today for the month of August.  The rate increased to 9.2 percent from July’s revised rate of 8.9 percent.

Washington lost an estimated 8,000 non-agricultural jobs in August. Industries with the largest declines were in professional and business services (2,500 jobs), retail trade (2,400 jobs), and education and health services (1,800 jobs).  More than 319,000 Washington residents were unemployed and looking for work in July.

Employment Security Department Commissioner Karen Lee used today’s announcement to issue a call to the federal government to extend unemployment benefits. “The recession may be coming to an end, but thousands of our unemployed workers will run out of unemployment benefits before the job market begins to recover,” said Lee.  “We need Congress to authorize another extension for unemployment benefits.”

Tags: economy, unemployment, unemployment benefits

The state’s unemployment rate actually dropped in July — by .1 percentage points, but still: Down from 9.2 percent in June, July’s seasonally adjusted rate is at 9.1 percent, according to the Employment Security Department.

“While today’s news is reassuring and indicates that the economy may be stabilizing, this does not mean the national recession is over,” Gov. Chris Gregoire said in a statement. The governor said she’ll continue to work with the president to get federal money into communities. “We also are working together to provide additional job-training opportunities and financial support.”

Stay tuned for more a bit later. For now: Don’t forget today’s your last chance to vote in the primary.

Tags: unemployment