Jobs increase by 300 in February 2011

MOSES LAKE - Grant County saw an increase of 300 jobs in February from the previous month.

The additional jobs were found in the areas of service providing, goods producing and agriculture, explained Mark Berreth, a regional labor economist with the state Employment Security Department. 

"It's nice little jump, that's for sure," he commented.

In February, unemployment decreased by three tenths of a percent to 12.6 percent.

"Grant Count is doing better than the state," Berreth explained. "The state contracted a little bit in goods producing, where as Grant County was up about 8 percent."

It appears there is interest in the area with the construction of BMW/SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers' Moses Lake plant, he said.

The areas of goods producing and food processing increased slightly.

"That one's been relatively flat," he commented. "I think a lot of the growth has been with construction and durable goods." 

Moses Lake construction projects also include Grant Transit Authority's new location, ASPI Group's retail center on Patton Boulevard, the Civic Center and Park Orchard Elementary School.

Jobs in the areas of information and financial activities, such as business services and banking, grew by 23.7 percent from February 2010 to February 2011.

Although business in the above areas grew last year, the job growth started occurring this year, he noted.

Unemployment is still high, but tends to be a seasonal factor in the North Central Washington counties of Grant, Chelan, Douglas and Okanogan.

At the same time, growth is occurring in Grant County.

"North Central Washington has been growing almost all across the board," he commented. "Just like Grant County, just about all the counties in North Central Washington are doing well and growing a lot right now."

In the future, jobs in the areas of trade and transportation may drop as gas prices increase.

Recently consumer confidence wavered a bit.

Growth has been seen in the last few months, but that is starting to fall a little bit, he commented.

From February to March, the job market was nearly identical.

"There was a big pick-up in information/financial activities," he said. "Otherwise things are looking the same. We had sustained growth through all the sectors. The unemployment rate has dropped a little bit, but things look a lot alike ... There's nothing real drastic. We're just starting to turn the corner now."