The drop of three-tenths of a point in April follows a decline of two-tenths of a point in March, according to the Washington State Employment Security Department. All told, the unemployment rate has fallen by half a percentage point since the start of the year.
“The labor market is continuing to improve at a moderate but accelerating rate, somewhat faster than the nation,” said Scott Bailey, a labor economist for Employment Security, in a press release.
Industries with the most estimated job gains in April were retail trade, leisure and hospitality and professional and business services.