2019_KittitasCountyHMP_Volume 1_For Adoption

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CHAPTER 4. KITTITAS COUNTY PROFILE 4-19 The county benefits from a variety of business activity. Major public and private employers include Central Washington University, Kittitas Valley Community Hospital, Ellensburg School District, Kittitas County, Anderson Hay and Grain, Elmview Ellensburg, and Fred Meyer. Central Washington University is the major educational and research institution in the county, with a student enrollment of 11,376 and a staff and faculty of 1,438. 4.7.2 Employment Trends and Occupations According to the 2016 ACS, about 60 percent of Kittitas County’s population 16 years and over is in the labor force. Of the working-age population group (ages 20-64), 75.9 percent of men and 70.2 percent of women are in the labor force. According to the Washington Employment Security Department, unemployment rates in Kittitas County were consistent in the four-year period from 2005 to 2008 (before the “Great Recession”). Rates ranged from a low of 5.4 percent in 2007 to the “high” of 6.3 percent in 2008. During the recession however, the unemployment rate in Kittitas County peaked at 9.8 percent in 2010. Average annual unemployment rates have been on the decline ever since. The unemployment rate fell to 9.3 percent in 2011, to 8.8 percent in 2012, to 7.8 percent in 2013, to 6.9 percent in 2014, 6.3 percent in 2015, and to 6.0 percent in 2016. As of June 15, 2018, Kittitas County’s unemployment rate was 4.8 percent. Figure 4-9 shows the distribution of employment by occupation type according to the 2016 ACS. Figure 4-9. Occupations in Kittitas County The U.S. 2016 ACS estimates that over 73.5 percent of Kittitas County workers commute alone (by car, truck or van) to work, and mean travel time to work is 20.8 minutes (the state average is 26.7 minutes). According to the Washington Employment Security Department, the two largest jobholder age groups in Kittitas County were 55-years and over, and 25-34 years. These two categories accounted for 22.7 percent and 20.9 percent of employment in 2016. A close third was the 45-to-54 year old group, at 18.8 percent. In 2016, women held 49.5 percent of all jobs in Kittitas County. However, there were substantial differences in gender dominance by industry. Male-dominated industries included transportation and warehousing (83.6 percent), construction (83.3 percent) and utilities (75.8 percent). Female -dominated industries Management, Business, Science, and Arts 33% Service occupations 23% Sales and office occupations 21% Natural Resources,Construction and Maintenance 12% Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 11%