There are more Oregonians in the labor force now than any time in the past decade, underscoring the job market’s extraordinary recovery from the pandemic recession.
Labor force participation hit 63.5% in May, according to data out Wednesday from the Oregon Employment Department. The figure, which represents the number of people working or looking for work, bottomed out at 59.2% in April 2020, the first month after a pandemic lockdown closed many Oregon businesses.