Employment Indicators for Whatcom County, Washington (2024)

Total Employed

115,468
Civilian 16+

Private For-Profit

67.6 %
Largest Sector

Self-Employed

7.5%
Entrepreneurship

Government

15.7%
Public Sector

Whatcom County, Washington Workforce by Sector & Gender

Employment sector breakdown by gender in
Figure 1: Male vs Female participation in employment sectors (2024).

Whatcom County, Washington Employment Sector Breakdown

SectorTotal WorkersPercentage
Private For-Profit78,03967.6%
Government18,12515.7%
Self-Employed8,6297.5%
Private Non-Profit10,3238.9%

Whatcom County, Washington Gender Ratio Analysis by Employment Sector (2024)

SectorMale:Female Ratio
Private For-Profit1.29:1
Government0.80:1
Self-Employed1.10:1

Whatcom County, Washington Employment Trends (2010–2024)

Long-term employment trends in

Whatcom County, Washington Historical Employment Sector Trends

YearPrivateGovSelf-EmpNon-Profit
202467.6%15.7%7.5%8.9%
202367.9%15.7%7.5%8.7%
202267.6%16.3%7.2%8.7%
202167.8%16.5%7.4%8.2%
202068.3%16.0%7.3%8.2%
201968.7%16.4%6.7%8.0%
201868.3%16.7%6.7%8.1%
201767.6%17.4%6.9%7.9%
201667.9%17.6%6.5%7.7%
201567.8%18.0%6.6%7.3%
201467.4%17.5%7.2%7.7%
201368.1%17.2%7.2%7.4%
201268.4%16.9%7.2%7.5%
201168.9%15.9%7.6%7.5%
201068.1%15.9%8.2%7.7%

Employment Sector FAQs for Whatcom County, Washington

The largest employment sector in Whatcom County, Washington is Private For-Profit, which employs 67.6% of the local workforce.

There are approximately 115,468 civilian workers aged 16 and over currently employed in Whatcom County, Washington.

In the private for-profit sector, the male-to-female ratio is 1.29:1. This metric helps highlight gender participation across the most prominent industry classes.

Since 2010, the total number of workers in Whatcom County, Washington has shown an increase, moving from 94,761 to 115,468 according to Census Bureau records.