-
California's Unemployment Rate: California's unemployment rate reached 5.3% in February, the highest in the nation and the highest in California since December 2021. Total number of unemployed surpassed projections made for the budget by Department of Finance by 7%, adding further strain to a state budget already facing multi-year deficits due to high spending.
-
Unemployment Trends: Since August 2022, California's unemployment rate has risen steadily while post-pandemic job growth remains behind Florida, North Carolina, and Texas. Since August 2022, California number of unemployed has grown by 304,200, or just under two-thirds of the 475,000 total increase experienced by the nation as a whole in that period.
-
Demographic Impact on Unemployment: Workers with lower education levels, younger individuals, Latinos, African-Americans, and men are disproportionately affected by unemployment, highlighting the need to reconsider policies holding back job creation for these demographics.
-
Employment Dynamics & Unemployment: California's job openings rate has declined steadily, impacting the potential for future jobs expansion as employers, especially in the tech industry, pull back on expansion plans. Unlike the US overall and the better-performing states, the demand for workers has fallen below the supply since last fall, resulting in the rising number of unemployed.
-
Effects of Job Growth Structure on Unemployment: Job losses in California's high-tech sector continue to grow, while all net new jobs created over the past year came only from industries fully or partially dependent on public funding: government, health care, and social assistance. As the windfall tax revenues from high tech supporting those jobs recede, future job trends will become determined more by the cost and regulatory restrictions affecting the rest of the traditional industries in the state’s economy.
|
|
|
