While Coos Bay’s private sector continues cutting jobs, government work is holding steady.
The number of private-sector jobs in Coos Bay peaked at 17,430 in 2006, but the figure fell to 15,700 by the third quarter of 2009.
However, government jobs in Coos County have seen a smaller decline and state jobs have even managed to grow because of the recession.
The state’s Human Services department sees increased demand as people lose their jobs and need government assistance. And other public-sector jobs usually withstand the initial onslaught of an economic downturn. When housing construction dried up, electricians lost their jobs, but city planners still had outstanding projects to keep them working. And people still need government services, such as fire fighting, even in bad economic times.
“Government usually lags with layoffs and might lag when things start to improve,” said [State Economic Analyst Dwayne Stevenson], who works for the Oregon Employment Division.
Read the full story at The World Link.
{biztweet}Coos Bay public jobs{/biztweet}
