UMATILLA COUNTY, Ore.-Both Umatilla and Morrow Counties have gained jobs over the past 13 years, with the Greater Hermiston area, which includes Hermiston, Umatilla, Stanfield and Echo, accounting for the most job growth.
“Greater Hermiston’s diversified private sector and ongoing technology investment continue to create stability, despite national slowdowns in the agriculture, food processing and hospitality sectors,” said Mark Morgan, Hermiston’s Assistant City Manager, in a letter highlighting the job growth on August 28.
Umatilla County job growth
There were roughly 28,000 jobs in Umatilla County from 2008-2019, according to data from the Oregon Employment Department, which represents actual jobs countywide, rather than unemployment. The number of jobs then increased to about 30,000 between 2019 and 2024.
“We then see, beginning in 2019, net employment really beginning to rise, roughly in conjunction with the start of significant construction and operation of data centers in Western Umatilla County,” said Morgan.
Umatilla County added 3,200 jobs between 2012 and 2022, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, with 2,200 of those within the Hermiston zip code, and 666 added in the city of Umatilla.
That means that the Greater Hermiston area accounted for 91 percent of the net job gains in Umatilla County and 60 percent of the net gain across Umatilla and Morrow Counties combined, according to the City of Hermiston.
Census data for information sector jobs typically highlights newspaper and radio employment and showed 170 jobs in the Greater Hermiston area in 2018. However, in June 2025, there were 880 information jobs.
“These are the permanent, ongoing operational data center jobs; all of which, we know, are located in the Hermiston and Umatilla zip codes,” said Morgan.
Morrow County job growth
Morrow County also experienced steady job growth, similar to that seen in the Greater Hermiston area, between 2012 and 2024, growing from 3,500 to 5,800 jobs.
Most new Morrow County jobs were centered in the Greater Boardman area, comprised of Boardman and Irrigon. According to Census Bureau data, the Greater Boardman area added 1,489 jobs from 2012-2022.
Combined, the Greater Boardman and Greater Hermiston areas account for 4,419 of the 4,870 jobs added between 2012 and 2022, or about 90 percent of the job growth in the Morrow and Umatilla County area.
“Real solid numbers show that our area truly continues to grow and add jobs, which in turn leads to more customers and demand for all of us,” said Morgan.
