Here’s a good reason why Southern California freeways are jammed: Record numbers of people at work!
Local bosses added 66,300 workers in the 12 months ended in March — by the way, that’s 101 year-over-year gains in a row — to push the number of jobs to 7.68 million in the four counties covered by the Southern California News Group. The job count is up from 7.62 million a year ago and the 7.21 million average for the previous five years. It’s the highest job count for any March on record.
Here are 11 other hiring trends in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties that my trusty spreadsheet found for March. It’s compiled from the state Employment Development Department’s monthly report tracking March’s (seasonally unadjusted) data compared with data from a year ago and the average of the previous five years …
1. Unemployment rate: 4.1% vs. 4.3% a year ago; and a 6.4% 5-year average. Rest of the state? 4.7%. U.S. rate? 3.9%. And it’s the lowest SoCal jobless rate this century for any March.
2. Number of jobless: 358,800 compared with 381,500 a year ago — a decrease of 22,700 or -6% — vs. the 546,330 average for the previous five years.
3. SoCal’s job recovery: 101 consecutive months of year-over-year job growth dating to October 2010. In this post-recession rebound, 1.19 million jobs were created, or a 2.13% annualized hiring pace. Rest of state’s streak? 104 months creating 1.76 million jobs at a 2.57% percent-a-year hiring pace.
4. Job growth: 0.9% in a year compared with 2.5% a year ago and 1.7% two years ago. Rest of the state? Up 1.8% percent.
5. Goods-producing jobs: 950,800 vs. 958,100 a year ago — a loss of 7,300 or -0.8% — vs. the 926,803 average for the previous five years. Rest of state in March? Up 2.1% percent.
6. Service-industry jobs: 6.73 million compared with 6.66 million a year ago — up 73,600 or 1.1% — vs. the 6.28 million 5-year average. Rest of California in March? Up 1.8% percent.
7. Government jobs: 1,023,800 vs. 1,015,700 a year ago — up 8,100 or 0.8% — vs. the 961,987 average for the previous five years. Elsewhere in California for March? Up 2.0% percent.
8. Los Angeles County: 4.3% unemployment in March as the number of jobs grew 0.8% in a year.
9. Orange County: 3% unemployment; 0.7% job growth.
10. Inland Empire: 4.3% unemployment; 1.4% job growth.
11. SoCal’s share: 44.6% of all 17.24 million California jobs and 28.2% of the 235,000 jobs added statewide in the past 12 months.
