Nov. 18--Clark County's job market continued to show weakness in October, with the highest unemployment rate in Washington, again.

The county's preliminary jobless rate was estimated at 13.7 percent last month, up from a revised 12.4 percent in September and 7.1 percent in October 2008, according to the Washington Employment Security Department. The county lost a seasonally adjusted 200 jobs in October and now has an estimated 29,970 residents off the job and looking for work.

A portion of those laid-off workers held jobs outside the county. The county's unemployment rate is affected by the rough economy in Oregon, where the statewide unemployment rate was 11.3 percent in October.

Analysts first put Clark County's unemployment rate above 13 percent last March. Since then the rate has wavered between 11.5 percent and 13.9 percent, with little expectation that much will change any time soon. Hardest-hit sectors continue to be construction, down 2,400 jobs in the 12 months through October; manufacturing, off 1,400 jobs; and retail trade, transportation and utilities, down 1,900 jobs. The county's health care industry continues to be a job generator, up 700 jobs in the 12 months through October.

Southwest Washington, including Clark, Skamania, Cowlitz and Wahkaikum counties, continues to report some of the highest unemployment rates in the state, all over 10 percent. Cowlitz, with a jobless rate of 12.2 percent, ranked No. 2 on the jobless chart.

Statewide, the unemployment rate in October also crept higher, to 9.3 percent from 9.1 percent in September. If the state's October number holds up through revisions, this would be the highest statewide jobless rate since 1984. Washington has lost more than 160,000 jobs since the recession began. The U.S. jobless rate is 10.2 percent.

Regional Labor Analyst Scott Bailey said Tuesday that the employment outlook remains mixed.

"Outside of health care, there's some hope that longer-term, the region will benefit from expansion of alternative energy and conservation equipment manufacturing," Bailey said.

Meanwhile, while certain national indicators suggest economic recovery, unemployment rates are expected to continue to climb into 2010, with the national rate going well above 10 percent.

In October, 2,885 county residents filed first-time unemployment claims, up from 2,600 in September. More than 6,800 resident filed a continued claim, a 66 percent increase from a year ago, Bailey reported.

Because of a delay in receiving Oregon employment data, Clark County's jobless rate is typically revised downward from the preliminary estimated rate. However, the revised local jobless rate has been below 12 percent only once since January.

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