October 2025 Unemployment Report: Initial vs. Continued Claims Across King, Pierce & Snohomish Counties

The October 2025 unemployment data for King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties provides critical context at a time when major employers in the region are announcing new workforce reductions. Amazon recently announced more than 2,300 layoffs beginning in January. Meta is planning to lay off 101 employees across Seattle, Bellevue, and Redmond starting in December. Starbucks will lay off 1,312 workers statewide beginning in December, and Microsoft laid off 830 employees in August.

While these headlines are significant, most of these layoffs have not yet occurred, and therefore do not appear in the current unemployment data. When we look at the October jobless claims, the immediate labor market appears more stable than the headlines alone would suggest.

Initial unemployment claims — which measure new layoffs — are substantially lower than they were a year ago. King County reported 5,368 initial claims, a decline of 3,236 from last year, or nearly 38%. Pierce County reported 3,098 initial claims, an 18.6% decrease. Snohomish County registered 2,198 new claims, down 62.3% year over year. These trends indicate that fewer people are entering unemployment today than in October of 2024.

At the same time, continued unemployment claims — which measure how long individuals remain unemployed — increased across all three counties. King County continued claims rose 8.1% year over year, Pierce County increased 8.8%, and Snohomish County saw a 12.5% rise. This means that although fewer people are losing their jobs, those who are unemployed may be taking longer to secure new employment.

For the housing market, this combination of lower initial claims and rising continued claims creates a mixed but stable backdrop. Declining new layoffs tend to support buyer confidence and help prevent sudden increases in inventory. Rising continued claims underscore the importance of tracking labor trends over the coming months, especially as the announced layoffs from major employers begin to take effect in late 2025 and early 2026.

Overall, the current labor data suggests a relatively stable environment for real estate across King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties, with no immediate signs of widespread economic distress. However, the region should expect to see some impact in the coming months as the announced layoffs begin to flow through the unemployment system.