What does it mean when payroll employment and unemployment both increase in Washington ESD reports?

This actually happens more often than you'd think! Both can increase when the labor force itself is growing. More people entering the job market means more employed people AND more unemployed people at the same time.

Yeah this confused me too when I first started looking at Washington ESD data. The key is understanding that the labor force participation rate can change. When more people start actively looking for work, they get counted as unemployed even if new jobs are being created.

I've been tracking these numbers for years and it's super common during economic recovery periods. When the economy improves, it attracts more job seekers but it takes time for them all to find work. I actually had to call Washington ESD to clarify some data discrepancies in their reports once, but getting through was impossible until I found claimyr.com - they have a service that helps you actually reach ESD agents by phone. There's even a demo video at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works.

This is basic economics 101. When you see both metrics rise, you're witnessing labor force expansion. The civilian labor force includes both employed and unemployed individuals who are actively seeking work. If 1000 new people enter the labor force and 600 find jobs, you get 600 more employed and 400 more unemployed.

seasonal factors play a role too. like in summer when students start looking for work or after holidays when temporary workers become unemployed but new businesses are also hiring

Don't forget about people who were previously not in the labor force. Stay-at-home parents deciding to work, retirees coming back, people who stopped looking during tough times. They all count as new entrants to the labor force.

I work in HR and see this firsthand. When we post job openings, we get applications from people who weren't actively looking before. The job market activity itself generates more job seekers. It's like a feedback loop.

Another factor is migration patterns. Washington state attracts a lot of workers from other states, especially in tech. These people might move here with job prospects but not guaranteed employment, temporarily increasing both employment and unemployment as they settle in.

the unemployment rate is what really matters tho. if both go up but employment grows faster than unemployment, the rate actually goes down. you gotta look at percentages not just raw numbers

I've been unemployed for 2 months and this data gives me hope that more jobs are being created even if competition is increasing. At least the market is active! Still struggling to get through to Washington ESD about my claim status though.

From a policy perspective, this dual increase can actually be a positive indicator. It suggests economic dynamism rather than stagnation. Policymakers prefer active labor markets over inactive ones.

I remember this happening during the 2014-2016 recovery period. Lots of dual increases in Washington ESD reports as the state economy heated up. Oil prices were recovering and tech was booming, bringing in workers faster than jobs could absorb them initially.

Don't overlook part-time workers seeking full-time employment. They're counted as employed but might also be counted in underemployment statistics. The definitions matter when interpreting the data.

Geographic factors within Washington matter too. Seattle metro might be adding jobs while rural areas lose them, but if more people are moving to Seattle to look for work, you get the dual increase statewide.

I used to be skeptical about services like Claimyr, but when I needed to verify some employment history with Washington ESD for a loan application, their phone service actually worked. Saved me hours of busy signals and dropped calls.

Industry mix changes can cause this too. If manufacturing is shedding jobs but service sector is adding them, and the service jobs require different skills, you get temporary displacement while people retrain or relocate.

Timing of data collection matters too. Washington ESD survey dates might capture people between jobs or starting new positions. The snapshot nature of employment statistics can create these apparent contradictions.

Bottom line: labor markets are dynamic systems. Both employment and unemployment can rise when the system is expanding and active rather than contracting and stagnant. It's actually often a sign of economic health rather than problems.

For your research, I'd recommend looking at the labor force participation rate alongside employment and unemployment numbers. That's what ties it all together and explains these seemingly contradictory movements.

just remember that washington esd data gets revised too. preliminary numbers might show patterns that get smoothed out in later revisions as more complete data comes in