OLYMPIA – Washington's economy added 2,400 jobs in September and the state’s preliminary seasonally adjusted monthly unemployment rate for September decreased from 8.4 percent (adjusted) to 7.8 percent according to the Employment Security Department (ESD).

"Payroll growth slowed markedly in September," said Paul Turek, economist for the department. "A shift to remote learning apparently led to less government hiring than usual this time of year, which showed up largely in local education."

ESD released the preliminary job estimates from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics as part of its Monthly Employment Report.