Our initial analysis of the May Employment Report from the California Employment Development Department is abbreviated again this month as the full data we usually incorporate will not be released by US Bureau of Labor Statistics until next Tuesday. Our full report will be released then. For additional information and data about the California economy visit www.centerforjobs.org/ca.
Highlights for policy makers:
- Stronger Growth in the May Jobs Data
- California Labor Force
- Nonfarm Jobs
- Nonfarm Jobs by Region
- Unemployment Rates by Region
- Counties with Double-Digit Unemployment
- Unemployment Rate by Legislative District
Stronger Growth in the May Jobs Data
Both the nonfarm job and employment numbers showed positive gains in May but again at different scales. Nonfarm jobs rose by 43,700, while the previously reported April gains were revised down by 1,100 to 4,100. With the preliminary May results, nonfarm jobs have now averaged gains of 17,000 in the first 5 months of 2024, higher than the 6,400 average set in the same period last year and closer to the 20,800 average for the entire pre-pandemic year of 2019.
Employment gains were also positive for the second month in a row, but barely significant at a gain of only 7,500. Compared to May 2023, employment is down by 115,500 workers.
California Labor Force
Employment rose marginally by 7,500 (seasonally adjusted), with the total employment loss since May 2023 now at 115,500.
US employment fell by 408,000.
California unemployment was down 17,700, while US unemployment rose by 157,000. California unemployment has remained above the 1 million mark for the past 5 months in a row.
Nonfarm Jobs
Nonfarm wage and salary jobs posted their best performance since last October, with a gain of 43,700. April’s far weaker gains were revised lower to 4,100.
For the US as a whole, nonfarm jobs rose 272,000 in May.
Nonfarm Jobs by Region
Job gains were positive across all regions. The Los Angeles, Central Coast, and the budget-critical Bay Area still remain below their pre-pandemic peaks.
Because the data in the table is seasonally adjusted, the numbers should be considered as the total for the counties in each region rather than the regional number. This job series also is not available for all areas in California.
Unemployment Rates by Region
Looking at employment (not seasonally adjusted), Los Angeles was the only region to show significant gains over the year. Bay Area was 79,800 below for the year and 213,300 below the pre-pandemic level in 2019.
Unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) remain higher in all regions except the rural areas compared to pre-pandemic February 2020 levels.
Counties with Double-Digit Unemployment
The number of counties with an unemployment rate (not seasonally adjusted) at 10% or more dipped to 2. The unadjusted rates ranged from 2.9% in San Mateo to 15.4% in Imperial.
Unemployment Rate by Legislative District
The estimated unemployment rates are shown below for the highest and lowest districts. The full data and methodology are available on the Center’s website.