Year in Review 2018: Yamhill County

April 16, 2019

Revised payroll employment estimates for 2018 show that Oregon’s job growth was slower than growth in 2017.

On an annual average basis, Oregon’s payroll employment grew 34,200 jobs or 1.8 percent in 2018. That compares with a gain of 41,700 jobs or 2.3 percent in 2017.

On an average annual basis, Yamhill County’s payroll employment grew 640 or 1.9 percent in 2018. In 2017, Yamhill County’s employment grew 730 or 2.2 percent.

Yamhill County’s private sector grew 3.6 percent in 2018, adding 1,050 jobs.

The county’s construction sector reported the steepest losses during the Great Recession that began in December 2007, but has shown double-digit percentage growth in employment in recent years. Construction’s employment growth slowed in 2018. Following the addition of 200 jobs in 2017 to grow 12 percent, job growth slowed to add only 30 jobs in 2018, growing 2 percent. Despite the healthy growth in recent years, Yamhill County’s construction employment level in 2018 was 230 jobs, or 11 percent below its employment level in 2007, prior to the recession.
Yamhill County’s manufacturing has been a bright spot in the economy, recording positive growth in both 2017 and 2018. In 2017, manufacturing employment added 250 jobs, growing 4 percent. In 2018, the sector added 360 jobs. The county’s manufacturing employment in 2018 was 230 jobs or 3.4 percent above its 2007 employment level, prior to the Great Recession.

Within trade, transportation, and utilities, wholesale trade employment declined 1.5 percent, shedding 10 jobs in 2018. Retail trade employment grew 1.1 percent, adding 40 jobs in 2018. Transportation, warehousing, and utilities shed 40 jobs in 2018, declining 7.3 percent. 

Leisure and hospitality had another strong year of growth in 2018. After adding 100 jobs in 2017, the sector gained 230 jobs in 2018, growing 6.4 percent.

Public-sector employment shed 410 in 2018, dropping 8.5 percent. However, much of the drop in government jobs was caused by the reclassification of approximately 320 home care workers from state government to private-sector health care and social assistance, accounting for the majority of Yamhill County’s public sector decline.

Benchmarking Process

The newly revised payroll employment numbers are the result of the annual benchmarking process. This revision process is conducted by Oregon Employment Department staff in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment numbers for both 2017 and 2018 are revised. For the monthly data through September 2018, original survey-based estimates were replaced with universe employment counts from the Unemployment Insurance tax system. Numbers from October through December 2018 were then re-estimated using sample employment data from a survey of businesses.