BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Washington’s unemployment rate has reached a four-year high as the state released its first jobs report in over two months.

According to the Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD), the state’s seasonally adjusted jobless rate sat at an even 5% in January.

That was just a notch above December’s rate of 4.9% but was the highest the state has seen since 2021.  It continues a concerning trend of Washington’s unemployment rate steadily climbing over the past year.

The department will release county-level data on Tuesday, April 7.

The state hadn’t published unemployment data since late January due to delays stemming from last year’s federal government shutdown.

The ESD says it will be releasing the February and March employment reports later this month.

It comes as the national unemployment rate slightly dipped in a strong March jobs report, much to the surprise of forecasters.