Washington ESD unemployment rates during Trump administration - looking for historical data

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has historical unemployment data by state. For Washington, unemployment was around 4.4% in 2017, dropped to about 3.8% by 2019, then obviously spiked during COVID in 2020. The Washington ESD website also has historical reports in their archives section.

I was actually unemployed in 2018 and remember the job market being pretty good then. Took me about 6 weeks to find something, which felt normal. The Washington ESD weekly claims process was much simpler back then - fewer people in the system meant shorter wait times.

If you're having trouble getting through to Washington ESD for historical data, I recently discovered this service called Claimyr that helps people actually reach ESD agents by phone. They have a website at claimyr.com and even a video demo showing how it works (https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ). Might be worth trying if you need specific data that's not publicly available.

Pre-COVID unemployment was definitely lower but you have to remember the economy was in a very different place. Tech jobs were booming here in Washington, Amazon was expanding rapidly, and there weren't supply chain issues affecting employment.

washington state had one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country during 2017-2019, around 3.5-4%. then covid hit and everything went crazy. i remember my friend couldn't even file her claim because the washington esd website kept crashing

For context, Washington's unemployment rate hit historic lows around 2019 but that doesn't account for underemployment or people who gave up looking for work. The participation rate is also important to consider.

honestly the trump years feel like a different era for unemployment. no pandemic benefits, no extended claims, just regular UI. the washington esd system was so much simpler

I work in workforce development and have access to historical data. Washington's unemployment peaked at about 15% in April 2020 but was consistently below 4% for most of 2017-2019. The state's economy was strong, especially in tech and aerospace.

Remember that unemployment stats from that period don't capture the full picture of economic anxiety. Many people were working multiple part-time jobs or dealing with wage stagnation even when technically employed.

If you need current data for comparison, Washington ESD's website has up-to-date unemployment rates. Though calling them directly might be tough - I've heard good things about that Claimyr service for actually reaching ESD agents when you need specific information.