Daggett County Economic Update

Tyson Smith, Regional Economist

The Uintah Basin continued to add employment throughout the fourth quarter of 2014. Average annual employment in the region grew nearly 4 percent from 2013. Despite the sustained growth trend throughout last year, it appears that the economic conditions in the Uintah Basin are taking a turn for the worse.

The Utah Department of Workforce Services relies on several data sources to help describe the state of the economy. The most accurate data available is the nonfarm payroll employment information that is collected through the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. However, the resources required to gather data accurately come at the expense of timeliness, which results in a four to six month lag between the time these data are collected and when they are available to the public.

When economic trends change dramatically it is important to understand the recent history of the region, while also using up-to-date information to inform the current economic climate. The most recent data that highlight the shrinking labor market in the Uintah Basin are the unemployment rate and the initial weekly unemployment claims, both of which have jumped significantly to start 2015.

Daggett County Economic Indicators

The Uintah Basin region felt the effects of the downturn starting in 2009, when the labor market shed 2,626 jobs from the previous year. Overall, 2010 also brought job losses, though by the end of the year Uintah and Duchene counties began adding jobs at a substantial rate. The tide really turned during the next two years when the region added over 3,300 payroll jobs. Year-over growth rates were 7.5 percent and 7.8 percent in 2011 and 2012, respectively. In 2013 however, the Uintah Basin lost momentum, and employment contracted slightly. So far, this year appears to be a reversal of last year’s trend with second quarter employment growth outpacing the state average.

• Daggett County has been the exception to the region in terms of payroll employment growth. Since 2011, total employment has contracted with only the occasional month of growth. The 4.5 percent year-over job growth in the first quarter 2014 was countered by job losses of 4.9 percent in the second quarter. On average, the county lost 22 jobs from second quarter 2013 to second quarter 2014. Arts/entertainment/recreation shrank 23.9 percent and shed as many jobs (14) as any industry. 
• As job growth stagnated in the county, the unemployment rate ticked up slightly. The rate settled at 4.2 percent in September (up from 4.0 percent in the previous six months), placing the county among the middle of the pack among Utah’s 29 counties. Daggett County’s unemployment rate has been slightly higher than the state average since early 2013.
• The increase in the supply of labor, combined with the loss of some high-paying jobs, led to a 10.4 percent decrease in average monthly wages from second quarter 2013 to second quarter 2014. Wage growth will likely continue to reflect job growth.
• Second quarter 2014 taxable sales in Daggett County rebounded from first quarter, which marked the first quarter of negative year-over growth in two years.
  Five more homes were sold in third quarter 2014 (11) compared to the year prior (6), and the year-to-date data point to a consistent upward trend in 2014 home sales (up 45.5 percent).

New County Pages

See our new County Pages, each with their own URL for easy bookmarking. Find labor market information that has been divided into counties and regions for a quick look at each area.

Also find a new look for the Current Economic Snapshots (Daggett, Duchesne and Uintah). These are economic snapshots are a two-page look at the current information for labor force, sales, building and unemployment insurance for each county in Utah, and are updated monthly after the Employment Situation.

These can be accessed on the Utah Economic Data page or on the Labor Market page under the "County Snapshots" link.