Lincoln County continues to lead the state with the highest unemployment rate.
The Oregon Employment Department announced Tuesday that the unemployment rate for the county was 10.6 percent in August – down substantially from the rate of 15.5 percent in July. The rate in August 2019 was 4.2 percent.
The county, because of its dependence on tourism, has had the highest unemployment rate in Oregon since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in March. In April the county’s unemployment rate was 26.2 percent.
For August, the state said Lincoln County had the highest unemployment rate in Oregon and was the only county in double figures. Multnomah County had the second highest rate at 9.7 percent. The statewide unemployment rate was 7.7 percent in August; the national rate was 8.4 percent.
Regional economist Erik Knoder said August’s employment numbers showed a loss of 2,870 jobs compared with the year before, a decrease of 14.6 percent. Leisure and hospitality work accounted for most of the drop with a loss of 1,290 jobs, down 24.2 percent from the year before.
The agency said there were 20,469 people in the civilian labor force in August, and 18,444 had jobs.