Employment

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WAGE COMPARISON

Annual salary (full-time, 40-hour week) in Spokane County compared to other counties throughout the state, 2015

HELP WANTED

Top five occupations with the most job postings in Spokane and statewide, according to 2016 data

Spokane County

Registered nurses (545 jobs posted online)

Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (269)

Retail salesperson (186)

Customer service representatives (153)

Food preparation supervisors (137)

Washington state

Registered nurses (7,533 jobs posted online)

Software developers (5,139)

Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (4,247)

Computer occupations (3,820)

Retail salesperson (3,203)

Top five skills with the most job postings in Spokane and statewide

Spokane County

Quality assurance (420)

Critical care (359)

Behaviorial health (332)

Pediatrics (269)

Technical support (244)

Washington state

Quality assurance (10,868)

Java (9,696)

Structured query language (9,099)

Linux (6,330)

C/C++ (computer programming) (6,048)

Source: Washington State Employment Security

Rising Stars and Startups

What do chickens, electrical engineering and an online retailer have in common? Nothing, except that they describe three of the fastest-growing companies in the Inland Northwest.

Zaycon Fresh

A poultry-selling startup that's taken a page out of same playbook as Airbnb and Uber. Subtract the huge warehouse and massive inventory; Zaycon's model of delivering chicken right to your door has expanded into a $17 million business since it launched in 2010.

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories

Already the largest private employer in Whitman County, the electrical power engineering giant plans to open a 200,000-square-foot facility in Pullman, adding about 850 jobs during the coming year.

Etailz Inc

The only Spokane-based company on Inc.'s top 5,000 fastest-growing companies in 2015, this is an e-commerce and technology business that also operates three brick-and-mortar shops. It ranks No. 625 on Inc.'s list and has seen 732 percent three-year-growth.

— Mitch Ryals