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County unemployment continues to plunge 6/15/04 Clallam County’s jobless rate continues to drop to levels not seen in decades, sliding to just above 5% in May. The latest report from the State Employment Security Department shows just 5.3% of the county’s workers were without a job last month. That’s down from an already respectable 5.9% in April, and shows a considerable improvement from May of last year, when the jobless rate was at 7.7%. Clallam County EDC leaders have predicted the county’s average unemployment for the year could end up being the lowest in 30 years. Jefferson County is also benefiting from better economic times, with a May unemployment rate of just 4.3%, down from a little less than 5% in April and a full percent and half lower than last spring. That’s one of the lowest in the entire state. The Peninsula’s other two counties are also showing job growth, although not as robust as Clallam and Jefferson. Mason County’s unemployment dropped to 6.5% in May, while Grays Harbor improved to just under 8 percent. Statewide, the jobless rate dropped slightly in May, down to 6-point-1
percent. State officials say the improvement was tied to more jobs
in business services, warehousing and manufacturing.
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