Jackson County ends year a mere 18 jobs ahead of year before

Published 5:15 pm Wednesday, January 24, 2024

The Rogue Valley ended 2023 with an unemployment rate down nearly a percentage point from the year before.

In terms of actual payroll numbers, however, Jackson County was up only 18 jobs from December 2022.

The Medford-Ashland Metropolitan Statistical Area’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December was 4.3%, according to newly released numbers from the Oregon Employment Department.

The rate is up slightly from November’s rate of 3.9%, but down nearly a percentage point from December 2022’s unemployment rate of 5.2%.

There were 100,752 people employed in all categories last month in Jackson County, up 18 from the same time a year before. More significant was the county’s nonfarm employment number of 91,610, an improvement of 1,460 jobs from December 2022.

Compared to November, however, the number is up 20 jobs. Regional economist Guy Tauer at the Oregon Employment Department characterized the monthly increase in an analysis as “essentially unchanged.”

The unemployment rate hovered at 4.1% in September and October.

The industries that saw the greatest gains from the end of 2022 included private education and health services up 1,110 jobs; leisure and hospitality up 460; government jobs up 420; construction up 190; and wholesale trade up 50.

The industries that lost the most jobs were retail trade, which fell by 560; financial activities, down by 260; information, down by 120; and manufacturing, off 60 jobs.

In nearby Josephine County, the unemployment rate was 5% last month, a 1.6% drop from December 2022.

The Grants Pass metropolitan statistical area had nonfarm payroll numbers of 27,550 at the end of the year, up 570 jobs from the same time a year prior.

Industries that saw the most gains included private education and health services, and leisure and hospitality. The biggest losses included retail trade, professional and business services and financial activities.