Hiring gains across a variety of local industries in November brought San Diego County’s unemployment rate down to its second-lowest point in years, a seasonally unadjusted 4.3 percent that bested the state and national economies.
Contradicting economists who said the region’s revised 4.7 percent jobless rate in October left little room for improvement, California’s Employment Development Department said employers in the county added 12,100 jobs last month, with particular strength in retail (up 5,200 jobs, or 3.5 percent) and leisure and hospitality (1,700, 0.9 percent).
There was also growth in areas not as closely associated with holiday spending, such as administrative and support services (up 2,100 jobs month over month, or 2.6 percent), government (2,100 positions, or 0.9 percent), transportation and warehousing (1,000, 4.3 percent) and insurance (300, 1.7 percent). Even construction eked out a small gain of about 100 jobs, or 0.1 percent.
Employment declines were reported in areas including agriculture, which was down 400 jobs, or 4.5 percent; wholesale trade of durable goods (down 400 positions, or 1.7 percent); and ambulatory health-care services (-500, -0.6 percent)
Only four months earlier, in July, the county’s seasonally unadjusted jobless rate stood at 5.3 percent, having climbed from 4.2 percent in May. The gauge was essentially unchanged between September and October, coming in at 4.7 percent, before November’s improvement.
The state’s unemployment rate went from a revised 5.3 percent in October to an even 5 percent in November, also expressed in a seasonally unadjusted basis. Meanwhile, the national rate dropped from 4.7 percent to 4.4 percent.
