Economic Development Council of Lewis County Executive Director Matt Matayoshi speaks at a recent meeting at the Lewis County Courthouse in Chehalis.
The Washington state Employment Security Department’s latest unemployment numbers for Nov. 2019 show a 6.2 percent jobless rate in Lewis County, which continues a recent trend of “historic lows” in that department, according to the agency’s Regional Labor Economist Jim Vleming.
In Vleming’s Lewis County profile, updated earlier in 2019, the research specialist references how Lewis County endured economic hardship following the December 2007 recession, which spurred a drop in nonfarm payrolls and double-digit unemployment rates.
Currently, though, he noted how nonfarm payrolls are expanding and taxable sales for all industries are up more than 31 percent since 2010. In fact, Vleming concludes that “newfound optimism” has sparked development and job creation in construction, trade, leisure and hospitality.
Executive Director of the Economic Development Council of Lewis County (EDC) Matt Matayoshi confirmed that positive outlook by telling The Chronicle that based on unemployment and security data that goes back to 1990, the area’s unemployment rates have consistently been around 6 percent, which are indeed “historic lows.”
“We’re still hovering around that historic low. Unemployment typically picks up through the winter months. So, that’s very good news,” he added.
When speaking on sectors exhibiting progress, Matayoshi highlighted healthcare services, which has gained 150 jobs since 2017 and shown a 3.8-percent surge over that stretch. Data and research, he said, indicate that healthcare services will continue to grow.
He was also conveyed confidence on goods producing and manufacturing employment numbers, both of which are up by 11 percent and 13 percent respectively since 2017.
“Transportation/logistics, warehouse distribution and trucking associated with that also looks very strong,” continued Matayoshi. “The numbers (the Employment Security Department) provided shows that trade, transportation and utilities combined lost 30 jobs over the year … but it seems like with UNFI (United Natural Foods Inc.) coming in, and adding, or their intention to add, 300 jobs, for trade, transportation and warehousing — that actually looks pretty strong,” surmised the fifth-year EDC executive director.
However, Matayoshi wasn’t quite as enthusiastic about the construction sector, which is up 5.4 percent, according to the latest numbers. He pointed out that construction in Lewis County hasn’t rebounded “as far as it could have” since the recession due to people in that sector going on “to do other things.”
As far as how Lewis County could look to decrease the gap with the rest of the state in terms of average annual wage, as the county average sits at $40,500, per 2017 numbers, versus the state average of $62,077, Matayoshi pointed to healthcare jobs being instrumental in bumping up those totals on a local level. On that note, he maintained that the average state wage numbers are driven by urban areas within Pierce, King and Snohomish counties, where many local jobs happen to be based. Overall, Lewis County is “in line” with other rural communities across the state.
When asked about why individuals and families would be encouraged to consider Lewis County as a place to move to, Matayoshi cited how much money is being poured into education and recreation as a driving force that adds to the appeal of the area.
“If you look at Lewis County, both Centralia and Chehalis, and the community foundations that work with those districts, they’re investing a tremendous amount into education and into community facilities, such as parks. There’s a number of opportunities with sports and extracurricular activities through the sports facility in Chehalis and then what the NW Sports Hub in Centralia is doing to attract tournaments and events here … and then look at Centralia College, it’s really transformed in the past 20 years with four-year programs. So, there’s opportunities here.”
