April 18, 2024 3:40 a.m.

In March, Oregon’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment rose by 1,400 jobs, following a revised gain of 2,800 jobs in February.

An Oregon Employment Department release said March’s gains were largest in professional and business services which gained 2,400 jobs, government which added 1,000 jobs and wholesale trade which gained 600 jobs. Monthly declines were largest in construction, which lost 2,300 jobs, and retail trade and manufacturing, which each lost 600 jobs.

State Employment Economist Gail Krumenauer said hiring trends diverged the first three months of the year. Several major industries expanded by at least 1,500 jobs, while others contracted. Krumenauer said health care and social assistance continued its rapid growth of the past two years with gains totaling 3,300 jobs during January, February, and March. Administrative and waste services added 2,700 jobs during those three months, which was an abrupt shift following this industry’s loss of 4,600 jobs during 2023. Government added 1,500 jobs so far this year as it continued its recovery and expansion of the past three years.

The release said the industry that dropped the most during the first three months of the year was construction, which lost 3,300 jobs, following a relatively flat year in 2023 when it gained only 900 jobs. Meanwhile, accommodation and food services dropped 1,900 jobs so far this year, which nearly erased its gain of 2,000 jobs last year.

Krumenauer said Oregon’s unemployment rate was 4.2 percent in both February and March. Its rise from a record low of 3.4 percent in May 2023 is a sign of a loosening labor market. Another indicator of a loosening labor market was the rise in the number of Oregonians employed part time for economic reasons, which rose to 73,000 in March from a low of 48,200 in September 2022.