• Between December 2014 and December 2015, Garfield County added 61 net, new nonfarm jobs for a year-over growth rate of 3.5 percent.
• This moderate expansion occurred despite a notable drop in public sector positions (primarily local government) and the loss of a number of construction jobs.
• On the positive side, a majority of industries added sufficient employment to more than counteract the aforementioned declines.
• Leisure/hospitality services, private education/health/social services and information generated the largest numbers of new positions.
• In March 2016, the county’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate measured 8.7 percent, far higher than the statewide average of 3.5 percent.
• Although the county’s rate is the third-highest in Utah, a seasonal economy is responsible for its near-the-top ranking rather than underlying economic difficulties.
• A low seasonal level of first-time claims in the first few months of 2016 lends credence to this supposition.
• Not surprisingly, leisure/hospitality services accounted for the lions’ share of new claims so far this year.
• Garfield County’s average monthly nonfarm wage continued on its slowly improving upward track. The fourth-quarter 2016 year-to-year increase proved particularly strong at 6 percent.
• As in many rural counties, Garfield County’s average wages trail far behind the state average.
• Between the fourth quarters of 2014 and 2015, the county’s gross taxable sales increased by a moderate 3.9 percent.
• Accommodations, information and retail trade experienced the strongest gains aided by expansion in business-investment expenditures in utilities.