Figures released in late December by the Washington State Employment Security Department show that local wages rose at a solid rate in the first half of last year.

Preliminary data released by the state agency estimated that the average wage in Pacific County grew by 4.6% in the second quarter of 2024 over the same three-month period the year prior. Wages increased by 6.1% for the first six months of the year as a whole, from an average of $876 per week in 2023 to $929 weekly in 2024.

The growth in wages easily outpaced the 3.6% inflation rate that the five Pacific Coast states — Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska and Hawaii — experienced in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. Wage growth outrunning inflation has been the case locally for much of the post-pandemic era, even when the inflation rate was near its peak.

ESD’s data is based on lagging quarterly employment and wage data that employers are required to submit. The figures show that just over $158 million was paid out to Pacific County workers in the first six months of last year, up from about $148.5 million over the same period in 2023.

Industries where workers experienced gains include the large local accommodations and food services sector. Employees at the likes of hotels, motels, restaurants and bars saw their average wage increase from $453 per week in the first half of 2023 to $472 in the same period of 2024 — an increase of 4.2%. Retail workers saw their average weekly wage increase by 7.9%, from $629 in 2023 to $679 last year.

Finance and insurance workers saw their weekly wages increase by an average of 7%, from $1,273 in the first half of 2023 to $1,362 over the same period in 2024. Manufacturing wages also increased by 7%, from $942 to $1,008 per week.

Those working administrative support positions and in waste services saw their wages increase by a modest 2.7% per week, from an average of $792 to $813. Construction workers saw just a 1.4% weekly increase, from $869 in 2023 to $881 in 2024, while wages for healthcare and social services employees was virtually unchanged — from $770 per week in 2023 to $769 last year.

Some of the biggest year-over-year local wage gains in the first half of 2024 came from the sector that covers agriculture, forestry and fishing and hunting. The average weekly gain improved from $846 in 2023 to $905 in 2024 — an increase of 7%.

But employment in that specific sector saw a notable hit compared to the year prior, with an average of 517 workers per month in 2024 compared to 565 monthly over the same period in 2023. The drop in employment was especially severe among fishers and hunters, which likely can be attributed in part to the devastating fire that destroyed the Ilwaco Landing facility along with millions of dollars in crabbing equipment in January 2024. The facility was a critical processor for independent local crabbers.