Half of Tri-Cities restaurant and food workers have lost their jobs since coronavirus hit

Nearly half of all Tri-Cities restaurant and bar employees were out of work in April.

Food service jobs plunged 48 percent compared to the previous three months of this year.

State unemployment figures released this week show restaurants, bars and other food service businesses cut 4,300 jobs from about 9,000.

“That is still less than we we expecting,” said Ajsa Suljic, regional labor economist with the state Employment Security Department. “We were expecting a loss of 80 to 90 percent. We are fortunate that some of the restaurants quickly adapted to change.”

Altogether since the start of the shutdowns to slow the spread of the coronavirus, almost 40,000 people in Benton and Franklin counties have filed for unemployment. That equals nearly half the population of Kennewick.

Overall, Tri-Cities had an unemployment rate of 13 percent in April.

The last time unemployment was in double digits in Benton County was in December 2012 through February 2013. At that time it hovered around 10.5 to 11 percent.

Suljic said state records date back to 1990 when they changed the way county job data was being collected.

The unemployment rate in recent years in Benton County was about 5.5 percent. That was an average of 5,600 out of work in 2019.

Last year, Franklin had an average of 2,800 unemployed during the year, for a 6.5 percent jobless rate.

Other hard hit industries this year include leisure and hospitality which cut 3,200 jobs, or a 26 percent drop from March.

And the construction, mining and logging industry slashed 18 percent of its jobs since March.

Unemployment claims

The latest numbers from Employment Security show nearly 13,500 workers filed an unemployment claim in Benton County in April and about 5,500 in Franklin County.

Since March 15, at total of 30,000 people have filed for unemployment in Benton County and about 9,800 in Franklin.

“These are unprecedented times for all of us,” Suljic said.

Unemployment claims for healthcare and social assistance workers accounted for 13 percent of those claims.

Retail trade and construction workers were each 12 percent of the claims, and accommodation and food service employees accounted for 11 percent.

Other sectors have suffered less.

“We have a lot of jobs that have been essential and are needed in the local community to keep moving,” Suljic said.

She pointed to the large agricultural base in the area, the growing population in Tri-Cities and the consistent demand for residential construction, need for healthcare and clean up at Hanford.

While some business owners are hoping to be able to reopen soon, the Tri-Cities has not yet moved to Phase 2 of the governor’s four-phase Safe Start Plan to reopen across the state.

Suljic said the economic recovery will depend on a lot of factors including supplies for manufacturing and consumer confidence in spending and safety.

“When the consumer confidence disappears along with discretionary spending, it will be felt throughout all industries,” she said.

Statewide job loss

Washington’s overall unemployment numbers are reflecting the economic shock felt throughout the nation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In March, the state took a hit of a 25,400 lost jobs. In April, a staggering 508,500 jobs were lost for a seasonally adjusted decrease of 527,000 jobs.

By comparison, Washington employment typically increases by 18,500 from March to April, according to historical patterns.

The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for April now sits at 15.4 percent.

Just a year ago, Washington saw an unemployment rate of 4.4 percent. The national jobless rate last month was 14.7 percent compared to 3.6 a year ago.

The Employment Security Department implemented significant fraud prevention measures over the past two weeks, which dropped weekly claims numbers.

Expanded unemployment benefits under the federal CARES Act, was offered in Washington starting April 18.

Across the state, leisure and hospitality took the biggest month-to-month hit with 177,000 jobs lost — 120,500 of those jobs were in food services and drinking venues.

Construction had a loss of 81,000 in April. Education and health services had a decline of 66,700 jobs, with 52,900 of those being in health service and social assistance.