Kennewick Washington Weather

Number of jobless is up from July '10

The number of jobs in the Tri-Cities appears to be starting to dip even though most Hanford layoffs are a month away.

Job figures released Tuesday by the state showed that employment in the Tri-Cities dropped by 3.4 percent compared with July last year.

"Local private industries are highly seasonal and majority of employment growth usually happens during the spring," regional labor economist Ajsa Suljic said in a news release.

She said even in the best years, Tri-City jobs in July have broken even on net job gains or losses. The last time the Tri-City economy gained jobs in July was in 2002, she said.

For the first half of the year, the Tri-City economy gained 2,600 jobs making this year the weakest in the number of job gains in the past 10 years.

Since 2000, the average growth in the first half of the year has been 4,700 jobs, said Suljic.

A main contributor to the weak growth this year could be the cool weather, along with expected Hanford layoffs in September.

Another likely reason is the trickle down from the stagnant growth of the national and state economies, she said.

Overall, the work force, at 135,680 people, had 4,280 fewer workers than a year ago. A total of 125,950 Tri-Citians were working in July.

So the number of unemployed had increased by 160 people to 9,730 in the last year.

The Tri-Cities' unemployment rates were unchanged from June, at 7.2 percent. The state's unemployment rate of 9.3 percent in July was also the same.

Franklin County's rate stayed at 7.7 percent, while Benton County's dipped from 7 percent to 6.9 percent.

Areas that grew in employment compared to the previous year include 500 jobs added to construction, 400 to professional and business services and 200 to local governments, which include school districts.

Educational and health services also grew by 400 compared with last July.

Kennewick General Hospital is adding positions as it continues to grow, said Liz Syer, KGH director of marketing and business development. Growth has especially been seen with the physician practices and clinical areas.

WA Teen Immunization Rates Above Average | KEPR CBS 19 - News ...

New state-by-state teen immunization rates released today in the 2010 National Immunization Survey show Washington above the national average for the third year in a row. Although more Washington teens are protected from serious vaccine-preventable diseases than in previous years, we’re still below our goals for immunization coverage among teens. “The improvement in our teen vaccination rates shows that healthcare providers are talking to parents and teens about vaccinations,” said Secretary of Health Mary Selecky. “Immunizing teens is just as important as immunizing young children - it protects the teens and it protects babies in the family who are too young for vaccination.” Even with the gains in teen immunization rates, the survey shows that Washington is not meeting the national goal of vaccinating 90 percent of teens with recommended immunizations that protect against human papillomavirus (HPV), whooping cough (pertussis), and meningococcal disease. The survey also covers three routine childhood vaccines: measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR); hepatitis B; and chickenpox (varicella). Our rates for these vaccines also improved in 2010, but we are still behind the national goal. Our state has one of the highest HPV vaccination rates in the nation. Our rate for the first dose of HPV vaccine increased from 60 percent to 69.3 percent. The national average is 48.7 percent. Despite being above the national average for starting the three-dose series of HPV vaccine, most teens don’t get the second or third dose. To be protected, teens must finish the three-dose series. This year, our whooping cough immunization rate increased from 60.1 percent to 70.6 percent. Tdap, the whooping cough vaccine, became available in 2005 for adolescents and adults. Teens who aren’t up-to-date can spread whooping cough and other diseases to babies and young kids who are too young, or who cannot be fully immunized because of a health condition.

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