News release, Oregon Employment Dept. Before the Great Recession, Coos County’s employment levels peaked in June of 2006 at 24,050 jobs. While the official start of the recession was December of 2007, many rural areas throughout the state were starting to feel the leading effects of the recession beforehand. Current employment estimates show that Coos County had 21,870 jobs as of March 2017, 94 percent of its pre-recession peak. If we index the data we can observe how employment levels have changed. The method of indexing uses a specific base period, or rather beginning point of observation, and aims to show the relative change over time. In this instance, the employment levels of Coos, Curry, and Douglas counties have been indexed along with the State of Oregon to show the Southwestern counties’ relative change since January of 2007. Coos County’s employment is currently at 94 percent of its pre-recession employment levels. The neighboring counties of Curry and Douglas are at 92 and 93 percent of their pre-recession employment levels, respectively. Once the index reaches 100 (100%) this will signify that employment levels are equal to their January 2007 values. Oregon surpassed its pre-recession employment levels in late 2014. The recession hit the Southwestern Oregon counties early and stayed late, but full recovery lies ahead.
