Lewis County's unemployment rate rose in July to 11.5 percent from 10.1 percent the previous month.
Out of 35,649 residents in the county's civilian labor force, 31,533 were employed and 4,116 unemployed. In June, 31,393 out of a total labor force of 34,920 were employed.
The county's unemployment rate for May was 15.7 percent and in April 16.6 percent. In March, before the COVID-19 pandemic devastated the area's economy, the unemployment rate was 6.2 percent.
Washington state's unemployment rate for July increased to 10.3 percent from 10 percent the previous month, though non-farm employment rose by 44,500 in July, according to the state Employment Security Department. The private sector gained 37,000 jobs during the month, the public sector 7,500.
Out of a civilian labor force of 3,968,200 in July, 408,000 state residents were employed compared to 389,800 the previous month. In July 2019, with a 4.2 percent unemployment rate, 166,600 Washington residents were employed; the month before, 168,900 were employed with a 4.3 percent unemployment rate.
The United States unemployment rate, meanwhile, dropped from 11.1 percent in June to 10.2 percent in July as total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 1.8 million for the month. May's unemployment rate, by contrast, was 13.3 percent. The country's unemployment rate in July 2019 before the economic fallout from the pandemic stood at 3.7 percent.
In Washington, there were 18,389 initial regular unemployment claims for the week of Aug. 16-22, down 16.2 percent from the prior week, and 568,881 total claims for all unemployment benefit categories — down 4.8 percent from the prior week.
For the week, the state Employment Security Department paid $182.8 million for 357,077 individual claims — a decrease of $15.4 million and 5,760 fewer individuals compared to the prior week. Since the week ending March 7, ESD had paid more than $9.89 billion in benefits.
In Lewis County, 187 county residents filed initial claims applications — down 19 percent from the week before when 232 residents filed. This week's figure is the lowest since the week of March 8-14 when 114 residents filed claims.
By industry, employees in food services/drinking places filed the most claims, followed by specialty trade contractors, and social assistance.
