|
 |
Apr-19-2008Calif. jobless rate jumps to 6.2 percent(topic overview)
CONTENTS:
SOURCES
FIND OUT MORE ON THIS SUBJECT
March's unemployment was the highest since July 2004, when the rate was also 6.2 percent, and up 1.2 percent from a year ago, with 229,000 more people looking for work, according to the department. Economists blamed the steady rise in joblessness in the state on deterioration of the crucial housing market, saying that more people losing their jobs means more bad news ahead for state and local government budgets. "This is a huge increase. The (housing) bubble has a slow leak, so it's hard to tell how long it will take" to fully deflate, said Howard Roth, chief economist for the state Department of Finance. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and state lawmakers next month would grapple with plunging tax revenue and a projected over 8 billion-dollar budget deficit as they prepare the state's spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1. [1] California's unemployment rate is the third highest in the United States, trailing Michigan with 7.2 percent and Alaska with 6.7 percent. According to Stephen Levy, director and chief economist of the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy, the state's job market is doing worse than these in Pennsylvania and Ohio, the two Rust Belt states that have figured prominently in the presidential primary elections because of their lost manufacturing jobs.[1] The higher unemployment rate is likely to cut into revenues for state and local governments, said Stephen Levy, director and chief economist of the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto, Calif.[2]
By comparison, the national unemployment rate was 5.1 percent in March, up from 4.8 percent a month earlier. "Its definitely looking like a recession, but its mild compared to the early 90s and the dot-com bust," said Stephen Levy, senior economist for the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy.[3] Stephen Levy, director of the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy, said only two states have higher unemployment rates, Michigan and Alaska. He said California probably is in "a mild recession."[4] "The disappearance of job growth and rise in unemployment means more bad news ahead for state and local budgets," said Stephen Levy, director of the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto.[5] "There are a lot of people looking for jobs out there." The uptick in people losing their jobs "means more bad news ahead for state and local budgets," said Stephen Levy, director of the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto. Next month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state lawmakers must grapple with plunging tax revenue and a projected $8-billion-plus budget deficit as they prepare the state's spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1.[6] By contrast, the Bay Area gained 19,800 jobs, calculates Stephen Levy, director of the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto. In the Bay Area, jobs in construction, finance and retail are disappearing as the housing market slumps and consumers slow their spending. Those losses have been more than offset by gains in tourism, technology, professional and technical services, education and health care.[7]
LOS ANGELES, April 18 (Xinhua) -- California's unemployment rate rose by a whopping half a percentage point last month, reaching 6.2 percent as a slowing economy shed more jobs especially in the construction and financial services sectors, the state's Economic Development Department reported Friday.[1] Total jobs outside the farm sector increased by 1,000 in March, while the unemployment rate rose to 6.2 percent after seasonal adjustments, the California Employment Development Department reported Friday. The unemployment rate climbed because the number of people in the labor force grew by 61,000 and not enough jobs were created to absorb them.[7] The civilian labor force in the Sacramento area grew faster, increasing 1.1 percent year-over-year to 1,069,300, according to data released Friday by the state Employment Development Department. That pushed the region's unemployment rate to an estimated 6.5 percent in March, up from a revised 6.2 percent in February and 5.1 percent in March 2007. Those figures were not adjusted for seasonal variations, such as the end of the ski season or the upturn in construction as winter weather improves.[8] SAN DIEGO The unemployment rate in San Diego County rose to 5.3 percent in March, up from 5 percent the previous month and an increase from 4.2 percent in March 2007, according to state Employment Development Department figures released Friday.[9]
For the first time in 15 years, San Diego County suffered a year-to-year decline in jobs last month, as the regional economy continued to feel the effects of the declining housing market. Between March 2007 and March 2008, local employers cut 1,700 jobs from their payrolls, according to data released Friday by the California Employment Development Department.[5]
California's nonfarm payroll employment increased by 1,000 jobs last month compared to February but that was too little to offset a growing labor pool, pushing the state's jobless rate to an estimated 6.2 percent, the Employment Development Department says Friday.[10] Unemployment shot up a half-percent to 6.2 percent in California last month, the highest rate in almost four years, the state Employment Development Department said Friday.[4] The state Employment Development Department said the unemployment rate in the Silicon Valley was 5.5 percent in March, up from a revised 5.2 percent in February and above the year-ago estimate of 4.5 percent. That compares with an unadjusted unemployment rate of 6.4 percent for California and 5.2 percent for the nation during the same period.[11] The state's unemployment rate for the month came in 0.4 percentage points lower than the national rate, which was at 5.1 percent fo March, according to data released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).[12]
"Things are very much trending in the direction of falling employment and rising unemployment," said Jon Haveman, a principal with the San Rafael research firm Beacon Economics. Across the nation, jobs dipped by 80,000 in March, and the unemployment rate rose 0.03 percentage point to 5.1 percent, the Labor Department reported earlier this month.[7] Tennessee's unemployment rate hit 5.6 percent for March, up 0.3 percent from February, according to the Tennessee Department of Labor.[13]
Californias unemployment rate shot up half a percentage point to 6.2 percent in March, as the number of people looking for work swelled by 84,000 the biggest monthly jump since 1976, the state said Friday.[3] SACRAMENTO, April 18 (UPI) -- California's unemployment rate jumped by.5 percent in March to 6.2 percent -- the highest it's been since July 2004 -- state officials said.[2]
Colusa County has the state's highest unemployment rate at 16.9 percent. The state's figures are estimates of jobs that are on payrolls, not actual headcounts or counts of those who work for themselves.[10] The unemployment rate rose in both California and the Sacramento metro area in March, but preliminary job data showed the four-county capital region adding more jobs than the state as a whole.[8] Levy noted that California's unemployment rate is the third-highest in the country, trailing Michigan with 7.2% and Alaska with 6.7%. California is doing worse than Pennsylvania and Ohio, Levy said, two Rust Belt states that have figured prominently in the presidential primary elections because of their manufacturing job losses.[6]
Share your thoughts on California's increasing unemployment rate. Hey, let's get those socialists up in Sacto on the job! Oh wait, they already are. and have been, for years.[6]
SACRAMENTO -- California's unemployment rate hit 6.2% in March, the highest level in almost four years, spurred by a continuing downturn in construction and financial activities.[6]
New claims for unemployment insurance were 48,282 in March 2008, compared with 49,321 in February and 40,514 in March of last year. From south to north, with the March unemployment estimate first followed by the February rate in parentheses: ' Kern, 10.8 percent; (10.0 percent) ' Tulare, 12.1 percent; (11.5 percent) ' Kings, 11.4 percent; (11.0 percent) ' Fresno, 11.1 percent; (10.6 percent) ' Madera, 10.6 percent; (9.7 percent) ' Merced, 13.7 percent; (13.4 percent) ' Stanislaus, 11.3 percent; (10.8 percent) ' San Joaquin, 10.3 percent; (9.9 percent) ' Sacramento, 6.4 percent; (6.1 percent) ' Yolo, 7.6 percent; (7.6 percent) ' Butte, 8.2 percent; (7.8 percent) Marin County had the state's lowest rate last month at 4.1 percent, the EDD says. That was up from February when the rate was 3.9 percent.[10] The unemployment rate in the San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City area was 4.4 percent in March 2008, up from a revised 4.1 percent in February 2008, and above the year-ago estimate of 3.8 percent.[11] The national unemployment rate for March 2008 was 5.1 percent, up from the February national rate of 4.8 percent.[13]
Minnesota's unemployment rate grew slightly to 4.7 percent in March, even though employers added 5,200 jobs.[12] The Bay Area's metro regions added jobs in March, but not enough to keep unemployment rates from rising.[7]
Unemployment is up 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier, with 229,000 more Californians looking for work than in March 2007. The job outlook has darkened as a largely housing-related slowdown has cut into the net worth of consumers, forcing them to cut back spending, economists said.[6] Unemployment last month surged to 5.3 percent, up from 5.0 percent in February and 4.2 percent in March 2007. Economists say the layoffs and the spike in unemployment raise the chances that the local economy may go into recession, but they continue to say it is not likely. "This is obviously not a good situation," said Alan Gin, economist at the University of San Diego. "I've been in the camp that's said we're not going to have an official recession, but this is moving us closer to that possibility.[5] The question is whether (the job losses) will continue over the next couple months." Marney Cox, economist for the San Diego Association of Governments, or SANDAG, said the economy is "hanging right on the edge of recession," although he still thinks San Diego can avoid it. He believes that California is headed into a recession if it is not there already.[5] Murtaza Baxamusa, economist for the San Diego Center on Policy Initiatives, said that the growing dependence on tourism jobs means the employment situation in San Diego County is worse than the hiring figures imply. "The mix of jobs available in San Diego region continues to shift toward low-paying, part-time jobs," he said.[5] On a monthly basis, San Diego County added 6,000 jobs between February and March. Most of those were seasonal jobs in leisure and hospitality related to spring break, as well as a seasonal bounce from January and February, which are typically two of the lowest employment months of the year.[5]
A bright spot in employment has been state and local government, which added 2,500 jobs in the past year. That hiring is likely to slow because of declines in sales and property taxes, coupled with declines in income taxes from laid-off workers and a rise in unemployment payouts. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is already threatening mass layoffs, and those threats may become reality as revenue shrinks.[5] The state lost 12,000 jobs over the past year, driving unemployment to 6.2 percent last month, compared to 5.7 percent in February. That was the biggest monthly jump since 1976.[5]
When seasonal changes are taken out of the equation, the county has lost jobs steadily from December through February, with a tiny uptick of 600 jobs last month, said Christopher Thornberg, an economist at Beacon Economics in Los Angeles. The year-to-year job losses were mainly concentrated in industries related to the troubled housing market, including 9,100 job cuts in construction and 5,700 in financial activities, such as real estate and mortgage brokerages.[5] The governor's efforts could help save construction jobs by shifting carpenters and other journeymen from residential developments to public works projects, said Michael Bernick, a former Employment Development Department director and research fellow with the Milken Institute in Los Angeles. "The more than $40 billion in infrastructure bonds, approved by voters in November 2006, are beginning to come on line," he said. Times staff writer Tiffany Hsu contributed to this report.[6] The Economic Development Department said 1.13 million people were unemployed, mainly in the construction and financial activities sectors, the Los Angeles Times reported.[2]
"Today's numbers show that the downturn in the residential construction and financial activities sectors continues to be a drag on the economy, but seven of California's 11 major industry sectors continue to show job growth," said Victoria Bradshaw, secretary of the Labor and Workforce Development Agency.[6] The number of people unemployed in California last month was approximately 1,133,000 ' up by about 84,000 over the month, and up by around 229,000 compared with March of last year, EDD says. Of the unemployed, 483,600 were laid off, 108,300 left their jobs voluntarily, and the remaining were either new entrants or reentrants into the labor market, or persons who completed temporary jobs.[10] Howard Roth, chief economist for California Department of Finance, said the March figure shows the volatility of the figures. He said job growth has been stagnant during the past year while the number of job seekers has steadily increased.[3] Howard Roth, chief economist for the California Department of Finance, called that "a huge increase." He said the deterioration of the housing market was responsible for the increased unemployment -- and told the Times there is no sign of a turnaround. "The bubble has a slow leak, so it's hard to tell how long it will take," he said.[2]
The Labor Department's state data, released Friday, showed that only Michigan and Alaska had higher unemployment rates than California.[7] California now has the third highest unemployment rate in the nation after Michigan, where unemployment has surged to 7.2 percent because of layoffs in the auto industry, and Alaska, which has a 6.7 jobless rate.[5] Sacramento-area unemployment rose three-tenths of a percent to 6.5 percent in March. That was the highest rate since it was 6.6 percent in January 1997, in the aftermath of the '90s recession.[4] The unemployment was the highest since it hit 6.2 percent in July 2004, before the housing boom drove rates to below 5 percent.[4]
Broken down, the unemployment rate was 11.4 percent in San Benito County and 5.3 percent in Santa Clara County.[11] Since February, even though the unemployment rate increased, the number of non-farm jobs rose by 6,000 in the county, the statistics showed.[9] The number of unemployed people rose by 84,000, even though the total of nonfarm jobs in California increased by 1,000 compared with February, the state said.[6] California added 1,000 non-farm jobs from February to March, but the number of unemployed people increased by 84,000.[2]
During the past 12 months, California's job market has lost ground. The state's nonagricultural employers had 12,000 fewer people on their payrolls last month than in March 2007.[7] California's eroding job market provides evidence that the state has slipped into recession, analysts said. They point out March's tiny payroll rise was due to Hollywood screenwriters returning to work after settling their strike.[7]
In a separate survey of employers, Californias nonfarm payroll employment increased by 1,000 jobs in March, bringing the total for that category to 15.17 million jobs.[3] Statewide, payroll employment grew by 1,000 jobs in March to 15.166,200; year-over-year, payroll employment was down 12,000 jobs, a decline of 0.1 percent.[8] Since March 2007, the county has suffered a net loss of 1,700 non-farm jobs to account for a 1.1 percent employment drop, according to the EDD.[9]
Year over year, industry employment in the area rose by 20,100 jobs or 2.1 percent.[11] According to a separate survey of households, the number of Californians holding jobs in March was estimated at 17,194,000, a decrease of 23,000 from February, but up 4,000 from the employment total in March of last year.[10] February to March employment gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, which increased by 6,600 jobs; trade, transportation and utilities employment increased 4,400; and jobs in construction, natural resources and mining increased 2,500.[13] The biggest decreases over the one-year period were in construction, which lost 9,700 jobs, and financial activities, which suffered a 5,700 job drop. Those negative factors overcame significant employment increases in the past 12 months in leisure and hospitality (4,100 new jobs), government (3,100), and educational and health services (2,900).[9] Manufacturing jobs were down from a year ago, with employment decreasing by 13,500; financial activities employment lost 1,200 jobs.[13]
Over the year, job losses occurred in construction, manufacturing, information and financial services.[7] 1,200 jobs were lost in manufacturing, which has long been in decline, and 900 jobs were lost in retail, which has been feeling the effects of the sagging economy. Those job losses were offset by major gains in hospitals, schools, law offices, laboratories, bars and restaurants.[5]
Many of the recent job losses have been concentrated in Southern California, while San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin counties continue to add jobs.[5]
Southern California had a net loss of 62,600 jobs for the same 12 months. One of those victims, Erik Ayala, 27, of South Los Angeles, lost his medical billing job in October. He said he never expected to be out of work for so long. He's been sending out 10 job applications a week and has been forced to rely on food stamps and his wife's earnings. "Sometimes I get to an interview and they've already filled the job," Ayala said.[6] Tightfisted consumers have made life difficult for John Rodriguez. Two months ago, he lost his job at a furniture warehouse store that closed because of lack of customers. "A lot of companies are in shutdown mode right now, not to mention that it's competitive fighting everyone else who's getting laid off," Rodriguez, 25, said during a fruitless visit to a state jobs office on Wilshire Boulevard near downtown Los Angeles.[6]
March's rise in unemployment, though not surprising, provides further evidence that California is "tipping into" a possibly prolonged recession, said Christopher Thornberg, the principal at Beacon Economics, a Los Angeles consulting and analysis firm. "We are going to have a good old-fashioned consumer spending recession in 2008," he said.[6] The San Diego County unemployment mark compares to 6.4 percent for California and 5.2 percent for the nation.[9] Since peaking in June 2006, San Diego County has lost 22,500 jobs related to construction, real estate and financing.[5]
Construction led the sectors that shed jobs, dropping 6,300 positions, while the financial activities sector lost 2,600 jobs. Both industries suffered from the subprime mortgage crisis.[3] The only nonfarm major industries to lose jobs compared to last March were trade, transportation, and utilities (down 700 jobs); and financial activities (down 500 jobs).[11]
Wage and salary jobs were up by 1,800 from March 2007 to March 2008, a meager 0.2 percent gain.[8] From March 2007 to March 2008 there were increases of 8,400 jobs in educational and health services.[13]
Among the sectors that gained jobs, information showed the biggest increase with 6,700 new jobs; while the educational and health services sector added 5,400. Associated Press Writer Solvej Schou contributed to this report.[3] In a statement, DEED Commissioner Dan McElroy said areas of strength include education and health services, which added 2,300 jobs.[12] The region added 4,700 jobs, boosted by strength in education, and the food service and hotel industries.[7]
Although employers added 1,000 jobs during March, there was little sense that things are improving.[4] Total industry employment in the Sacramento metro increased by 4,300 during March to reach 911,500, with much of the gain in government jobs.[8] The March figure increased from 5.7 percent in February and 5 percent in March of 2007, according to the state Employment Development Department, which derives the figures from household surveys.[3] The Employment Development Department reported Friday that 1.13 million people were out of work last month, marking the state's weakest economic performance since July 2004, when the jobless rate also stood at 6.2%.[6]
A separate survey of households, used to derive the jobless rate, showed the number of employed Californians dropping by 23,000 in March while the number of unemployed people in the state rose by 84,000.[7]
The civilian labor force grew by 233,000 year-over-year, pushing the seasonally adjusted jobless rate from 5 percent in March 2007 to 6.2 percent last month.[8] Based on data not adjusted for seasonal variation, the San Francisco metropolitan area, which includes Marin and San Mateo counties, registered a 4.4 percent jobless rate, up from 4.1 percent in February.[7] Year over year, total employment in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metropolitan statistical area grew by 0.8 percent.[11]
The employment squeeze was concentrated in Southern California, where nonfarm jobs fell by 62,600 over the year.[7] Statewide, the picture remained strongest in Northern California, which had a net increase of 19,800 jobs over the last year.[6] A total of 17.19 million Californians held jobs in March, an increase of only 4,000 from a year ago.[3] Silicon Valley had 6,900 more jobs in March than the same period a year ago, according to a report released Friday.[11]
There were 1.13 million people seeking jobs last month about 229,000 more than a year ago. Maria Eva Ontiveros, 52, lost her job at Manufacturers Bank in mid-January after being a banker for 21 years. She said her oldest daughter, who works as a teacher, has been helping pay the mortgage.[3] "The economy has been slowing, and we havent been generating jobs as quickly as we were a couple of years ago," Roth said.[3] "We have not expected to see year-over-year job declines. It really shows how much impact the decline in real estate has been having on the local economy."[5]
Leisure and hospitality employment increased by 2,800; and government jobs were up 2,000.[13] Although civilian employment in Los Angeles County decreased by 15,000, some sectors showed significant growth.[6] Thornberg said the employment situation would be worse it it weren't for a rise in tourism created by the low value of the dollar. "More people are coming to the United States to take advantage of our low prices," he said. "And more Americans are putting off their trips to Europe and deciding to go to SeaWorld or the Wild Animal Park instead."[5]
In related data, the EDD says there were 518,438 people receiving regular unemployment insurance benefits during the March survey week. This compares with 480,504 in February and 352,742 in March of last year.[10] Joblessness is up 1.2 percentage points from a year earlier, with 229,000 more Californians looking for work than in March 2007.[6]
Private educational and health services registered a net gain of 2,000 jobs since last year. [11] Information; trade, transportation, and utilities; government; professional and business services; and other services each posted gains of at least 600 jobs over the year.[11]
Professional and business services rose by 9,100 jobs, mostly in computer systems design and other professional, scientific, and technical services.[11]
"We're focusing our resources on helping people affected by the national housing slump move into jobs in industries that are growing."[6] Now the housing bubble has burst, eliminating thousands of jobs in construction and finance.[4]
For the first time since the housing crisis began, the layoffs in the real estate market outweighed the hiring in other sectors. "This is worse than we've been expecting," said Erik Bruvold, who heads the San Diego Institute for Policy Research, a local political and economic think tank. [5] The economic pain also spilled into the trade, transportation and utilities sector, which lost 4,700 payroll jobs; and professional and business services, which lost 2,400.[3] SANDAG's Cox noted that taxable retail sales in the county have dropped 2.2 percent since the current fiscal year began July 1, sliding from $37.1 billion in the first three quarters of fiscal 2007 to $36.3 billion in the same period of fiscal 2008. "With that kind of drop, you would expect to see a decline in retail sales jobs," he said.[5] Business - Unemployment in California surges to 6.2 percent - sacbee.com Some features on this site require that JavaScript be turned on.[4] Researchers at a California university said last month that California's economy, the largest in the United States, was probably already in a recession while the rest of the country may still avoid one.[1]
"Not a whole lot of good here," said Howard Roth, chief economist at the state Department of Finance.[4]
SOURCES
1. California's unemployment up 0.5% _English_Xinhua
2. Calif. jobless rate jumps to 6.2 percent - UPI.com
3. PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California
4. Business - Unemployment in California surges to 6.2 percent - sacbee.com
5. SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Business -- Economists bemoan local job losses
6. California unemployment rate hits 6.2% in March - Los Angeles Times
7. State unemployment rate jumps, few new jobs
8. Sacramento metro adds more jobs than state - Sacramento Business Journal:
9. SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Metro -- County unemployment rate rises
10. Central Valley Business Times
11. Silicon Valley jobs grow 0.8% in March, unemployment still rises to 5.5% - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:
12. Minnesota unemployment rises slightly in March, despite job adds - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:
13. State unemployment rate at 5.6% - Memphis Business Journal:
GENERATE A MULTI-SOURCE SUMMARY ON THIS SUBJECT:
Please WAIT 10-20 sec for the new window to open...
You might want to EDIT the default search query below:
Get more info on Calif. jobless rate jumps to 6.2 percent by using the iResearch Reporter tool from Power Text Solutions.
 |
|  |
|
