A sign on a business considered "nonessential" by the state notifies customers of its closure in downtown Vancouver late last month. (Amanda Cowan/The Columbian)
Roughly 10 percent of Clark County’s labor force has filed for unemployment in the last three weeks since COVID-19 prompted a state-ordered shutdown of nonessential businesses.
Data released Thursday by the Washington Employment Security Department show that between March 29 and April 4, a total of 9,378 Clark County residents filed for unemployment, up 8 percent from the week prior. It’s the third week to set a record of most unemployment insurance claims filed.
Last week’s data is also the first to include industry-specific claims at the county level. In the past three weeks, the industries suffering most in Clark County appear to be construction, health care, retail trade, accommodations and food service.
Among the biggest surprises is the number of managers who have filed for unemployment, said Scott Bailey, regional economist for Southwest Washington.
“When you look at occupational groups, the numbers in the management occupation sector were pretty high,” said Bailey. “I don’t think that would have occurred to most people.”
Bailey said he’s hesitant to predict that the week ending on April 4 will be the peak of unemployment insurance claims.
Roughly 24,000 Clark County residents filed for unemployment since March 15, which accounts for about 5 percent of the total population and 10 percent of the labor force, Bailey said. That includes residents of Clark County who commute to Portland for work.
The state will release March’s monthly employment statistics for Clark County on April 21, and they are likely to reflect the first effects from COVID-19. And while Bailey said there’s no direct relationship between initial claims and the actual unemployment rate, he wouldn’t be surprised to see double digits, but maybe not until April.
“April will be pretty huge,” he said.
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