Employers in the Spokane-Spokane Valley Metropolitan Statistical Area added 1,200 nonfarm jobs during the 12-month period ending in February, according to preliminary data from the Washington state Employment Security Department.

From January to February, however, total employment in the Spokane MSA decreased by 500 jobs. 

The February unemployment rate for the MSA, which includes Spokane, Pend Oreille, and Stevens counties, was 5.9%, slightly below the year-earlier rate of 6%, but up from the month-earlier rate of 5.3%.

For context, the state’s unemployment rate in February was 5%, down from 5.1% in February 2024, but up from 4.7% in January.

Of the state’s roughly 4 million-person labor force, the Spokane MSA accounted for 273,000 people, down from the year-earlier count of 285,000.