The number of Washington employers offering health insurance declined for the second year in a row, the state Employment Security Department reported Monday.
In 2004, 67.8 percent of employers offered health benefits to full-time workers. By 2006, that figure had fallen to 66.4 percent.
Part-time workers also saw their health insurance offerings decline from 15.1 percent in 2004 to 14.2 percent in 2006.
The survey included responses from 8,500 employers out of roughly 17,000 that received the state's questionnaire, including school districts and health care agencies. There are about 104,000 employers with two or more workers in Washington.
The survey also found that when full-time workers were given the option to enroll in health insurance, 75.7 percent signed up.
Among the industries most likely to offer health insurance to their full-time workers:
Education.
Finance.
Manufacturing.
All three offer health insurance to more than 90 percent of full-time employees.
At the other extreme, agriculture, which includes forestry and fishing, offers medical insurance to 41.2 percent of full-time workers. The accommodation and food services sector offers the benefit to 52.4 percent of full-time workers.
"The purpose of the report is really to assist job seekers in understanding what benefits might be available to them as they look for work," said Rick Lockhart, Employment Security Department economist.
Big employers are more likely to offer health insurance than smaller employers, Lockhart found, and industries that pay higher wages are more likely to offer health benefits.
"It's still an infant study," he said.
In future years, Lockhart said the study may include a closer look at how many employees choose to take advantage of the benefits available to them, and how employee enrollment changes over time.
Did you know?
* There are roughly 104,000 employers in Washington with two or more employees.
Based on a recent survey, the percentage of employers offering health benefits to full-time workers slipped from 67.8 percent in 2004 to 66.4 percent last year.
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