Oregon is adding jobs at its fastest rate in many years.
The Oregon Employment Department says the state added 4,400 jobs in August and that follows a revised gain of 7,400 jobs in July.
Over the past 12 months, Oregon's payroll employment has expanded by more than 60,000 jobs. The state hasn't had a run like that since June 1996 to May 1997.
State economists said the leisure and hospitality industry was responsible for much of August's gain, adding 2,100 jobs.
Despite the jobs boom, Oregon's unemployment rate nudged higher to 6.1 percent in August from 5.9 percent in July. The jobless rate is based on a survey of about 1,000 households, and has a margin of error of 0.7 percent.
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