San Diego’s six-month run of improving unemployment numbers just hit a speed bump, with the county’s jobless rate climbing to 4.4 percent in June. The uptick came even as total payrolls barely budged and the overall labor force shrank, leaving a murky mix of good and not-so-good news for local workers and employers. Seasonal hiring in hospitality and the annual wind-down of school jobs did a lot of the heavy lifting.
Data posted this week show San Diego County’s unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent in June from a revised 3.9 percent in May, while total nonfarm payrolls increased by roughly 200 jobs month to month, according to reporting in The San Diego Union-Tribune. The figures come from the state labor report for June, released yesterday.
Hospitality Leads Hiring, But The Party Is Not Widespread
Leisure and hospitality carried the month, adding about 2,500 jobs between May and June, with accommodation and food services accounting for more than 60 percent of that increase. Arts, entertainment and recreation chipped in roughly 900 openings, while other industries were a mixed bag, according to Patch.
Year-Over-Year Gains Clash With A Thinning Labor Force
Over the past year, San Diego added about 16,700 payroll jobs, led by private education and health services, which alone tacked on roughly 17,400 positions. Offsetting that strength, the government sector shed about 8,500 jobs, mostly at the federal level. The county’s labor force totaled about 1,640,500 in June, down more than 23,000 people from a year earlier, and six sectors combined lost about 14,800 jobs, according to the Employment Development Department.
How San Diego Stacks Up
California’s unadjusted unemployment rate was about 5.2 percent in June, while federal data put the national jobless rate near 4.4 percent. That leaves San Diego below the state average but roughly in line with the national trend, per the state and federal reports. Economists caution that headline rates can gloss over local weak spots when the labor force is shrinking and job growth is clustered in just a few industries. Full tables are available from the Employment Development Department and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
