In Central Oregon, unemployment rates showed minimal changes in November, with Crook County seeing a slight increase in its unemployment rate and Jefferson County experiencing a slight decrease.

Both Deschutes and Crook counties are mitigating job losses, partly due to expansions in the retail and hospitality sectors, according to new data from the Oregon Employment Department.

Crook County’s unemployment rate inched up to 5.7% in November, coinciding with a loss of 90 jobs, mostly in the public sector. Despite the slight increase, the unemployment rate remains just above the pre-pandemic record low of 4.5%. Although construction jobs declined, job losses were partially offset by growth in the retail and health service sectors.

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In Deschutes County, the unemployment rate held steady at 3.6% in November, only slightly surpassing the pre-pandemic record low of 3.4%. The county saw a modest job increase of 170 in November, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since February 2020, Deschutes County has added a total of 7,800 jobs, primarily fueled by expansions in the hospitality and health services sectors.

In one month, Deschutes County added more than 300 retail jobs. Anthropologie, one of the Old Mill District’s newest retail additions, hired 30 part- and full-time sales associates when it opened in late summer, said Mona Rogers, one of the store’s managers.

“We’ve been really busy, especially during the holidays. We’ve seen a lot of traffic,” Rogers said. “We’ve been warmly received by everyone at the Old Mill and we have a great staff.”

Meanwhile, Jefferson County experienced a slight drop in the unemployment rate to 4.4% in November, down from 4.5% in October.

In contrast to Deschutes County’s hospitality-driven growth, Jefferson County lost 30 jobs in the same sector, with minimal changes in other industries. Over the past year, Jefferson County saw an overall increase of 390 jobs, particularly in the public sector and health services industry.