Total payroll employment in Josephine County fell by 70 jobs in August, but local employment increased over the year.
According to the Oregon Employment Department, there were 34,245 people working in Josephine County last month for a seasonally adjusted jobless rate of 5.4% -- down slightly from 5.5% in July.
Private-sector industries losing jobs over the month were leisure & hospitality, manufacturing, and other services. Private education & health services gained 70 jobs over the month. Government employment lost 50 jobs, with 40 occurring in local government education plus a drop of 10 federal government positions.
Over the past year, payroll employment in Josephine County climbed by 180 jobs, an increase of 0.7%.
Industries adding jobs since August 2023 included private education & health services (+560), professional & business services (+80), and financial activities (+70).
Industries with estimated losses over the past year were leisure & hospitality (-340), manufacturing (-120), retail trade (-50), and wholesale trade (-10). Transportation, warehousing & utilities lost 20 jobs over the year.
Government employment rose by 70 jobs since August 2023. Local and state government added 120 jobs over the year, but local government education slipped by 50 jobs.
