Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Oregon Job Growth

There were 992,800 jobs in Portland, Oregon in March 2012 according to the CES survey of employers. The CPS survey of households showed 1,103,078 employed persons for the month. Portland lost 4,200 jobs in March 2012 according to the CES survey while the broader CPS measure of employment rose by 2,036 (Comparing CES and CPS employment numbers.). You can also compare Portland job growth to job growth in other cities.

Employment Survey	March 2012	Month/Month	Year/Year
CES	992,800	-4,200	+9,400
CPS	1,103,078	+2,036	+23,016

Note: The CPS survey data is now seasonally adjusted at the metropolitan level by with the new BLS SSA series.

Portland, Oregon Employment Changes

The chart below shows the monthly job growth for Portland as measured by the CES survey. To illustrate the trend, the 3 month moving average change in employment is shown in green. The CPS data is not shown since it is not seasonally adjusted at the metropolitan level.

CES Employment Change: 1 Month, Rolling 3 Month

CPS Employment Change: 1 Month, Rolling 3 Month

Total Employment for Portland, Oregon

CES employment for Portland peaked in March 2008 at 1,043,300. Since then 50,500 jobs have been lost in Portland according to the employer survey. From a trough of 960,600 in December 2009, Portland has gained 32,200 jobs according to CES employment figures.

CPS employment reached a maximum of 1,104,729 for Portland in June 2008. 1,651 jobs have been lost in Portland since then according to the household survey. From a November 2009 low of 1,049,175, Portland has added 53,903 jobs according to the CPS survey.

Employment: CES, CPS

Portland, Oregon Employment History

Date	CES Employment	CES Month/Month	CPS Employment	CPS Month/Month
March 2012	992,800	-4,200	1,103,078	2,036
February 2012	997,000	0	1,101,042	2,518
January 2012	997,000	7,900	1,098,524	3,350
December 2011	989,100	800	1,095,174	2,332
November 2011	988,300	-900	1,092,842	2,630
October 2011	989,200	-700	1,090,212	1,811
September 2011	989,900	1,900	1,088,401	707
August 2011	988,000	3,200	1,087,694	1,137
July 2011	984,800	300	1,086,557	-570
June 2011	984,500	400	1,087,127	545
May 2011	984,100	-2,600	1,086,582	2,471
April 2011	986,700	3,300	1,084,111	4,049
March 2011	983,400	1,500	1,080,062	4,719