WA unemployment holds steady at 4.5%, job growth shows signs of slowing

Washington’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.5% in July, the Employment Security Department confirmed.

The state added 10,800 jobs, showing signs of continued, but slowing growth, according to the department.

“After a slow start to 2025, job growth in June and July brought the Washington employment landscape back to the overall story of continuing — but slowing – growth,” Anneliese Vance-Sherman, chief labor economist at the Employment Security Department, said in a prepared statement. “Washington businesses added 10,800 jobs in July and the unemployment rate held steady at 4.5%.”

Over the past 12 months, Washington has gained 4,800 jobs, representing a 0.1% increase. Employers in the private sector collectively added 11,700 jobs in July, with leisure and hospitality, transportation, warehousing and utilities, and manufacturing industries seeing the largest growth.

“Construction showed the biggest employment loss compared with the same period last year (not seasonally adjusted),” the Employment Security Department stated. “It contracted by 11,300 (jobs).”

Unemployment in WA

The number of people who were unemployed in Washington increased from 180,500 to 181,000 over the last month. But, for those living in the Seattle/Bellevue/Everett region, unemployment decreased from 102,000 to 101,000 during that same time period.

Nationally, the unemployment rate increased from 4.1% in June to 4.2% in July.

Employment Security paid unemployment benefits to 64,181 people in July, an increase of 1,875 over the previous month.

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