Whatcom County’s unemployment increases for the fourth month in a row, along with WA state

Whatcom County’s unemployment rate increased for the fourth month in a row in January, with more people unemployed in January than in December as Washington state’s unemployment rate also increased.

Whatcom County unemployment

Whatcom County had a 5.7% unemployment rate in January with 6,492 unemployed people in the county, an increase of 611 unemployed people compared to December.

In December, Whatcom County’s unemployment rate was 5.1%, with 5,881 residents receiving unemployment benefits.

Whatcom County’s unemployment rate also increased compared to last year, as January 2023’s unemployment rate was 5.5%, 0.2% less than January 2024.

Whatcom County’s unemployment rate hit an extreme high of 17.4% in April 2020, and since then has fluctuated.

Ferry County had the highest unemployment rate in January at 11.1%, and King County had the lowest rate of 4.4%.

Washington state unemployment rates

The Washington State Employment Security Department’s January 2024 monthly employment report found that the state’s preliminary seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased from December’s 4.2% unemployment rate to 4.6% in January.

In January, 183,847 people in the state were unemployed, 13,467 more than in December 2023, according to the report.

In January 2022, 184,387 people in the state were unemployed, 540 more than this January.

As of December 2023, Washington had the 13th highest unemployment rate in the United States, according to a report by WalletHub, a finance website.

All data comes from the Washington State Employment Security Department and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.