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City forecasts show Seattle lost roughly 18,000 jobs over latest year; tech layoffs weigh heavily
Summary
Forecast office staff reported Seattle lost about 18,000 jobs between March 2024 and March 2025, with a broader 25,000 decline since March 2020; layoffs in the information (tech) sector and high mortgage rates are primary headwinds to employment recovery.
The city's independent forecast office told the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council that Seattle has experienced significant employment weakness: "The recent data shows that, Seattle has lost about 18,000 jobs between March 24 and March 2025," interim director Jan Duras said, citing Puget Sound Regional Council city-level estimates.
Duras and other staff explained the regional data covers the Seattle Metropolitan Division (King and Snohomish counties) and does not perfectly map to city-level employment in real time. They said layoffs in the information sector and slower growth in construction and trade contributed to year-over-year declines, and some announced large tech layoffs will only appear in city-level datasets in later releases. Staff presented a pessimistic scenario that could mean about 34,000 fewer jobs between the end of 2025 and mid-2027 in a deeper downturn.
