BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

11/05/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/05/2026 10:12

Business Employment Dynamics in Washington — First Quarter 2026

News Release Information

26-1668-SAN
Thursday, November 05, 2026

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  • (415) 625-2270

Business Employment Dynamics in Washington - First Quarter 2026

From December 2025 to March 2026 gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Washington were 171,381, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments from were 165,467, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 5,914 jobs in the private sector during the first quarter of 2026. (See table 1.) During the previous quarter, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 2,367. (See chart 1.)

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.)

Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in Washington, March 2021-March 2026, seasonally adjusted
Period Gross job gains Gross job losses

Mar 2021

217,767 155,606

Jun 2021

185,550 165,108

Sep 2021

203,522 163,318

Dec 2021

222,266 151,560

Mar 2022

211,842 155,504

Jun 2022

206,221 212,590

Sep 2022

213,012 184,284

Dec 2022

178,143 159,708

Mar 2023

195,590 187,695

Jun 2023

182,489 170,867

Sep 2023

172,140 180,584

Dec 2023

178,767 162,913

Mar 2024

174,011 185,997

Jun 2024

175,456 168,263

Sep 2024

175,486 172,624

Dec 2024

173,000 171,153

Mar 2025

172,799 183,833

Jun 2025

180,870 177,988

Sep 2025

157,274 180,684

Dec 2025

169,305 171,672

Mar 2026

171,381 165,467
View Chart Data

Gross job gains

In the first quarter of 2026, gross job gains represented 5.7 percent of private-sector employment in Washington; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.5 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In Washington, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 147,407 in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 3,169 jobs compared to the previous quarter. Opening establishments accounted for 23,974 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2026, a decrease of 1,093 jobs from the previous quarter.

Chart 2. Private-sector gross job gains as a percent of employment, United States and Washington, March 2021-March 2026, seasonally adjusted
Period Washington United States

Mar 2021

7.9 7.0

Jun 2021

6.7 6.8

Sep 2021

7.3 7.3

Dec 2021

7.8 7.7

Mar 2022

7.3 6.7

Jun 2022

7.0 6.6

Sep 2022

7.2 6.9

Dec 2022

5.9 6.3

Mar 2023

6.5 6.3

Jun 2023

6.1 6.2

Sep 2023

5.8 5.9

Dec 2023

6.0 5.9

Mar 2024

5.7 5.9

Jun 2024

5.9 5.8

Sep 2024

5.9 5.8

Dec 2024

5.7 5.9

Mar 2025

5.7 5.7

Jun 2025

6.0 5.7

Sep 2025

5.2 5.7

Dec 2025

5.6 6.0

Mar 2026

5.7 5.5
View Chart Data

Gross job losses

In the first quarter of 2026, gross job losses represented 5.5 percent of private-sector employment in Washington as well as nationally. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In Washington, contracting establishments lost 151,243 jobs in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 7,528 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 14,224 jobs, a decrease of 13,733 jobs from the previous quarter.

Chart 3. Private-sector gross job losses as a percent of employment, United States and Washington, March 2021-March 2026, seasonally adjusted
Period United States Washington

Mar 2021

5.5 5.6

Jun 2021

5.9 5.9

Sep 2021

6.0 5.9

Dec 2021

5.4 5.3

Mar 2022

5.5 5.4

Jun 2022

6.2 7.2

Sep 2022

5.9 6.3

Dec 2022

5.9 5.3

Mar 2023

5.5 6.2

Jun 2023

5.9 5.7

Sep 2023

5.9 6.0

Dec 2023

5.7 5.4

Mar 2024

5.5 6.2

Jun 2024

5.9 5.6

Sep 2024

5.8 5.8

Dec 2024

5.7 5.7

Mar 2025

5.5 6.0

Jun 2025

6.0 5.9

Sep 2025

5.7 6.0

Dec 2025

5.5 5.7

Mar 2026

5.5 5.5
View Chart Data

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 9 of the 11 published industry sectors in Washington in the first quarter of 2026. Education and health services had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 2,967 jobs. This was the result of 19,165 gross job gains and 16,198 gross job losses. The manufacturing industry had a net gain of 2,708 jobs, followed by the retail trade industry with a net gain of 2,702 jobs. Transportation and warehousing showed a net loss of 2,729 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at the Business Employment Dynamics homepage and the Business Employment Dynamics Summary.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Second Quarter 2026 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, January 27, 2027, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data

Data in this release contain annual revisions in accordance with standard procedures. These revisions include the previous four quarters of not seasonally adjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data.


Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

Table 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Washington, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains and losses
(3 months ended)
Gross job gains and losses
as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026

Total private (1)

Gross job gains

172,799 180,870 157,274 169,305 171,381 5.7 6.0 5.2 5.6 5.7

At expanding establishments

148,307 152,623 133,028 144,238 147,407 4.9 5.1 4.4 4.8 4.9

At opening establishments

24,492 28,247 24,246 25,067 23,974 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.8

Gross job losses

183,833 177,988 180,684 171,672 165,467 6.0 5.9 6.0 5.7 5.5

At contracting establishments

155,524 149,777 154,322 143,715 151,243 5.1 5.0 5.1 4.8 5.0

At closing establishments

28,309 28,211 26,362 27,957 14,224 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.5

Net employment change (2)

-11,034 2,882 -23,410 -2,367 5,914 -0.3 0.1 -0.8 -0.1 0.2

Construction

Gross job gains

18,945 17,519 15,248 16,325 17,438 8.9 8.3 7.4 8.0 8.3

At expanding establishments

16,219 14,300 12,591 13,478 15,258 7.6 6.8 6.1 6.6 7.3

At opening establishments

2,726 3,219 2,657 2,847 2,180 1.3 1.5 1.3 1.4 1.0

Gross job losses

18,813 19,297 20,171 17,730 15,205 8.9 9.2 9.8 8.7 7.3

At contracting establishments

15,283 15,973 17,055 15,076 14,376 7.2 7.6 8.3 7.4 6.9

At closing establishments

3,530 3,324 3,116 2,654 829 1.7 1.6 1.5 1.3 0.4

Net employment change (2)

132 -1,778 -4,923 -1,405 2,233 0.0 -0.9 -2.4 -0.7 1.0

Manufacturing

Gross job gains

7,798 8,635 6,803 10,769 10,188 2.8 3.2 2.5 4.1 3.8

At expanding establishments

7,130 7,858 6,183 10,079 9,350 2.6 2.9 2.3 3.8 3.5

At opening establishments

668 777 620 690 838 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.3 0.3

Gross job losses

11,357 11,196 9,010 8,581 7,480 4.2 4.2 3.4 3.3 2.8

At contracting establishments

10,378 10,117 8,214 7,621 6,967 3.8 3.8 3.1 2.9 2.6

At closing establishments

979 1,079 796 960 513 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.2

Net employment change (2)

-3,559 -2,561 -2,207 2,188 2,708 -1.4 -1.0 -0.9 0.8 1.0

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains

5,844 5,256 5,134 5,642 4,741 4.4 4.0 4.0 4.3 3.7

At expanding establishments

4,855 4,501 4,388 5,080 4,055 3.7 3.4 3.4 3.9 3.2

At opening establishments

989 755 746 562 686 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.5

Gross job losses

6,268 6,348 5,730 5,727 5,547 4.7 4.9 4.4 4.4 4.4

At contracting establishments

5,209 5,462 5,066 4,725 5,075 3.9 4.2 3.9 3.6 4.0

At closing establishments

1,059 886 664 1,002 472 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.8 0.4

Net employment change (2)

-424 -1,092 -596 -85 -806 -0.3 -0.9 -0.4 -0.1 -0.7

Retail trade

Gross job gains

18,726 15,575 14,556 15,185 17,785 5.8 4.7 4.5 4.7 5.5

At expanding establishments

16,531 13,298 12,896 13,181 16,043 5.1 4.0 4.0 4.1 5.0

At opening establishments

2,195 2,277 1,660 2,004 1,742 0.7 0.7 0.5 0.6 0.5

Gross job losses

13,668 19,342 18,934 18,615 15,083 4.2 5.9 5.8 5.9 4.6

At contracting establishments

11,726 16,369 16,363 15,248 12,681 3.6 5.0 5.0 4.8 3.9

At closing establishments

1,942 2,973 2,571 3,367 2,402 0.6 0.9 0.8 1.1 0.7

Net employment change (2)

5,058 -3,767 -4,378 -3,430 2,702 1.6 -1.2 -1.3 -1.2 0.9

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains

6,963 8,930 7,335 8,733 5,312 4.7 6.0 4.9 5.8 3.5

At expanding establishments

6,524 8,140 6,559 7,908 4,833 4.4 5.5 4.4 5.3 3.2

At opening establishments

439 790 776 825 479 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.3

Gross job losses

7,652 7,490 6,811 6,576 8,041 5.2 5.0 4.5 4.4 5.4

At contracting establishments

6,752 6,846 5,876 5,391 7,662 4.6 4.6 3.9 3.6 5.1

At closing establishments

900 644 935 1,185 379 0.6 0.4 0.6 0.8 0.3

Net employment change (2)

-689 1,440 524 2,157 -2,729 -0.5 1.0 0.4 1.4 -1.9

Information

Gross job gains

4,674 3,609 5,065 4,104 8,559 2.8 2.2 3.1 2.6 5.4

At expanding establishments

3,975 2,888 3,951 3,370 7,710 2.4 1.8 2.4 2.1 4.9

At opening establishments

699 721 1,114 734 849 0.4 0.4 0.7 0.5 0.5

Gross job losses

5,533 4,474 3,725 8,139 7,724 3.4 2.8 2.3 5.0 4.9

At contracting establishments

4,780 3,722 2,782 7,283 7,463 2.9 2.3 1.7 4.5 4.7

At closing establishments

753 752 943 856 261 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.2

Net employment change (2)

-859 -865 1,340 -4,035 835 -0.6 -0.6 0.8 -2.4 0.5

Financial activities

Gross job gains

7,420 7,377 6,205 8,046 7,229 4.8 4.8 4.1 5.4 4.7

At expanding establishments

6,436 5,838 4,943 5,837 5,783 4.2 3.8 3.3 3.9 3.8

At opening establishments

984 1,539 1,262 2,209 1,446 0.6 1.0 0.8 1.5 0.9

Gross job losses

6,966 7,168 7,607 7,731 6,333 4.6 4.7 5.0 5.2 4.2

At contracting establishments

5,570 5,673 5,967 5,682 5,618 3.7 3.7 3.9 3.8 3.7

At closing establishments

1,396 1,495 1,640 2,049 715 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.4 0.5

Net employment change (2)

454 209 -1,402 315 896 0.2 0.1 -0.9 0.2 0.5

Professional and business services

Gross job gains

27,916 32,196 29,090 26,766 27,425 5.3 6.0 5.5 5.0 5.2

At expanding establishments

23,252 26,278 24,257 22,276 22,109 4.4 4.9 4.6 4.2 4.2

At opening establishments

4,664 5,918 4,833 4,490 5,316 0.9 1.1 0.9 0.8 1.0

Gross job losses

30,281 29,850 29,342 31,456 26,925 5.7 5.6 5.5 5.9 5.1

At contracting establishments

24,816 23,470 24,434 24,863 23,716 4.7 4.4 4.6 4.7 4.5

At closing establishments

5,465 6,380 4,908 6,593 3,209 1.0 1.2 0.9 1.2 0.6

Net employment change (2)

-2,365 2,346 -252 -4,690 500 -0.4 0.4 0.0 -0.9 0.1

Education and health services

Gross job gains

22,181 23,138 19,960 21,877 19,165 4.2 4.3 3.7 4.1 3.5

At expanding establishments

19,124 19,842 17,190 18,684 16,403 3.6 3.7 3.2 3.5 3.0

At opening establishments

3,057 3,296 2,770 3,193 2,762 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.5

Gross job losses

19,460 18,296 20,479 16,202 16,198 3.6 3.4 3.8 3.0 3.0

At contracting establishments

16,090 15,537 17,445 13,138 15,111 3.0 2.9 3.2 2.4 2.8

At closing establishments

3,370 2,759 3,034 3,064 1,087 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.2

Net employment change (2)

2,721 4,842 -519 5,675 2,967 0.6 0.9 -0.1 1.1 0.5

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains

26,038 29,531 24,415 26,708 29,886 7.6 8.6 7.1 7.9 8.8

At expanding establishments

20,875 23,912 19,500 22,291 24,690 6.1 7.0 5.7 6.6 7.3

At opening establishments

5,163 5,619 4,915 4,417 5,196 1.5 1.6 1.4 1.3 1.5

Gross job losses

29,442 27,749 30,708 26,357 28,159 8.6 8.1 9.0 7.8 8.3

At contracting establishments

24,783 23,206 26,168 22,657 24,711 7.2 6.8 7.7 6.7 7.3

At closing establishments

4,659 4,543 4,540 3,700 3,448 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.1 1.0

Net employment change (2)

-3,404 1,782 -6,293 351 1,727 -1.0 0.5 -1.9 0.1 0.5

Other services (3)

Gross job gains

6,408 7,425 5,867 5,893 6,079 6.5 7.5 5.9 6.0 6.1

At expanding establishments

5,178 6,103 4,756 4,820 4,905 5.3 6.2 4.8 4.9 4.9

At opening establishments

1,230 1,322 1,111 1,073 1,174 1.2 1.3 1.1 1.1 1.2

Gross job losses

6,205 6,231 6,939 5,861 5,174 6.3 6.3 7.0 5.9 5.2

At contracting establishments

4,981 5,051 5,691 4,742 4,729 5.1 5.1 5.7 4.8 4.8

At closing establishments

1,224 1,180 1,248 1,119 445 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.1 0.4

Net employment change (2)

203 1,194 -1,072 32 905 0.2 1.2 -1.1 0.1 0.9

Footnotes:
(1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately.
(2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses.
(3) Except public administration.

TGS Table Preview
Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Category Gross job gains as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Gross job losses as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026

United States(1)

5.7 5.7 5.7 6.0 5.5 5.5 6.0 5.7 5.5 5.5

Alabama

5.5 5.5 5.5 5.9 5.5 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.3 5.2

Alaska

10.4 10.0 7.4 11.9 9.6 8.3 9.9 10.0 9.4 9.4

Arizona

5.8 5.2 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.3 6.2 5.3 5.4 5.6

Arkansas

5.1 5.1 5.4 6.0 5.3 5.1 5.6 5.4 5.3 5.4

California

6.1 6.4 6.3 6.9 6.3 6.4 6.7 6.1 6.1 6.0

Colorado

6.4 6.5 6.5 6.3 6.0 6.6 6.7 6.4 6.2 6.5

Connecticut

5.7 5.8 5.4 5.5 5.3 5.2 5.7 5.7 5.5 5.4

Delaware

6.0 6.0 5.3 5.5 5.5 5.4 6.1 6.0 5.6 5.4

District of Columbia

4.9 5.7 4.6 5.5 5.0 5.8 6.1 6.0 5.1 4.9

Florida

5.8 5.7 6.0 5.9 5.3 5.5 5.8 5.9 5.6 5.5

Georgia

5.6 5.5 5.7 5.9 5.3 5.7 5.6 5.7 5.4 5.5

Hawaii

5.2 4.9 5.2 5.1 5.0 5.2 5.2 4.8 4.7 5.1

Idaho

7.5 7.6 6.7 8.0 7.7 7.3 7.1 7.6 6.3 7.0

Illinois

5.0 5.2 4.7 5.3 5.1 5.0 5.1 5.0 5.3 5.0

Indiana

5.4 5.1 5.1 5.5 4.9 5.1 5.4 5.1 5.1 5.1

Iowa

6.0 5.5 4.8 6.2 6.0 5.6 5.8 5.9 5.4 5.4

Kansas

5.5 5.4 5.8 5.8 5.4 5.4 6.3 5.8 5.4 5.3

Kentucky

5.3 5.0 5.3 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.3 5.6 5.1 5.3

Louisiana

5.8 5.6 6.0 6.0 5.7 5.7 6.2 5.9 5.9 5.4

Maine

7.3 7.1 6.4 6.8 6.4 6.4 7.3 7.0 7.0 6.3

Maryland

5.9 5.7 5.8 6.1 5.6 5.8 6.6 6.3 5.5 6.0

Massachusetts

5.0 5.5 5.3 5.4 5.2 5.1 5.7 5.9 5.5 5.3

Michigan

5.3 5.8 4.9 5.6 5.4 5.3 5.4 5.9 5.3 4.9

Minnesota

5.1 5.8 5.3 5.5 5.2 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.6

Mississippi

6.0 6.2 6.4 6.4 5.7 6.1 6.2 6.0 5.9 6.3

Missouri

5.4 5.6 5.7 6.2 5.6 5.2 6.1 5.9 5.4 5.3

Montana

8.0 7.7 7.1 8.4 7.8 7.6 8.3 7.9 7.4 7.0

Nebraska

5.3 5.4 5.6 5.7 5.4 5.3 5.5 6.0 5.3 5.4

Nevada

5.4 6.1 6.9 6.4 5.7 5.9 6.3 5.3 5.4 5.7

New Hampshire

6.6 6.3 5.6 6.3 6.1 6.1 6.7 6.8 5.7 6.3

New Jersey

5.4 5.7 5.3 5.8 5.3 5.5 5.6 5.8 5.4 5.5

New Mexico

6.1 6.0 6.1 6.3 6.0 5.8 6.0 6.4 6.0 5.9

New York

7.0 6.1 5.9 5.6 5.4 5.2 7.0 5.7 5.5 5.2

North Carolina

5.6 5.7 5.4 6.0 5.8 5.5 5.4 5.7 5.0 5.3

North Dakota

6.7 6.4 6.2 6.9 6.8 6.5 6.8 6.6 6.4 6.7

Ohio

5.2 5.3 5.2 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.4 5.3 5.0 5.1

Oklahoma

5.5 5.6 6.0 6.2 5.3 5.3 6.2 6.3 5.3 5.3

Oregon

6.1 6.1 5.7 5.9 5.7 6.1 6.4 6.6 6.0 5.9

Pennsylvania

5.0 4.9 5.0 5.1 4.7 4.7 5.1 5.1 4.7 4.8

Rhode Island

6.6 6.3 6.0 6.6 5.8 5.9 6.7 6.6 6.2 6.0

South Carolina

6.1 5.9 6.3 6.6 6.0 5.6 6.1 6.1 5.5 5.7

South Dakota

6.3 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.9 6.4 6.0 5.9 6.1

Tennessee

5.5 5.3 5.8 6.0 5.4 5.3 6.5 5.5 5.3 4.9

Texas

5.1 5.2 5.3 5.8 5.4 5.1 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.4

Utah

6.8 6.9 6.9 6.6 6.4 6.2 6.8 6.5 6.2 6.1

Vermont

7.0 6.9 6.7 7.0 6.6 6.8 7.4 7.7 7.0 6.5

Virginia

5.6 5.9 5.8 5.8 5.5 5.2 5.8 6.1 5.2 5.4

Washington

5.7 6.0 5.2 5.6 5.7 6.0 5.9 6.0 5.7 5.5

West Virginia

6.7 5.6 6.1 6.1 6.4 5.9 6.4 6.2 6.2 5.4

Wisconsin

5.1 5.3 4.9 5.5 5.4 5.0 5.4 5.6 5.1 4.9

Wyoming

8.1 8.3 7.7 9.0 8.8 8.8 8.9 8.4 8.0 8.2

Puerto Rico

6.5 7.0 5.2 4.6 4.6 5.2 6.0 5.4 5.3 4.6

Virgin Islands

6.1 11.9 6.9 8.4 7.3 8.8 9.2 7.5 5.7 7.1

Footnotes
(1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

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