Important Note: The employment data for the month of October 2024 is taken from the survey week including October 12. Data for November is scheduled for release on December 20, 2024.
Employers Shed 5,500 Payroll Jobs for the Month
November 16, 2024 - SACRAMENTO – California lost 5,500 nonfarm payroll jobs1 in October 2024 as the unemployment rate rose slightly to 5.4 percent2, up one tenth of a percentage point from September, according to data released by the Employment Development Department (EDD). October’s job loss follows a downward revised job gain of 12,700 for the previous month.
California's Labor Market, by the Numbers...
- Since April 2020, California has gained 3,156,700 jobs – averaging 58,457 per month. While California lost 5,500 jobs in October, the nation only added 12,000 jobs overall.
- Five of California's 11 industry sectors gained jobs in October with Private Education & Health Services (+9,400) experiencing month-over gains in 32 of the last 33 months.
- Trade, Transportation, & Utilities (+2,600) showed an increase for the eighth consecutive month with majority gains occurring in Retail Trade and Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities as companies prepare for the holiday season.
- Losses in Government (-7,500) are largely due to job losses in its State Government subsector (-10,900).
- Professional and Business Services (-8,300) experienced the largest month-over decline, partly due to Employment Services as well as Waste Management and Remediation Services moving against their recent trends of gains, along with a potential hiring slowdown across the industry.
1. The nonfarm payroll job numbers come from a federal survey of 80,000 California businesses.
2. The unemployment rate comes from a separate federal survey of 5,100 California households.
Data Trends about Jobs in the Economy
Total Nonfarm Payroll Jobs (Comes from a monthly survey of approximately 80,000 California businesses that estimates jobs in the economy – seasonally adjusted)
- Month-over – Total nonfarm jobs in California’s 11 major industries amounted to 18,090,200 in October – a net loss of 5,500 from September. This followed a downward-revised (-2,000) month-over gain of 12,700 jobs in September.
- Year-over – Total nonfarm jobs increased by 212,100 (a 1.2 percent increase) from October 2023 to October 2024 compared to the U.S. annual gain of 2,173,000 jobs (a 1.4 percent increase).
EEOmail@edd.ca.gov or call toll free 1-866-490-8879. " width="100%" style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: middle; border-style: none;">
Total Farm Jobs – The number of jobs in the agriculture industry decreased from September by 900 to a total of 414,000 jobs in October. The agriculture industry had 9,400 fewer farm jobs in October 2024 than it did in October of last year.
Data Trends about Workers in the Economy
Employment and Unemployment in California (Based on a monthly federal survey of 5,100 California households which focuses on workers in the economy)
- Employed – The number of Californians employed in October was 18,359,400, a decrease of 5,800 persons from September’s total of 18,365,200 but up 14,000 from the employment total in October 2023.
- Unemployed – The number of unemployed Californians was 1,045,300 in October, an increase of 13,100 over the month and up 54,500 in comparison to October 2023.
Unemployment Insurance Claims (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
The following data is from a sample week that includes the 19th of each month:
In related data that figures into the state’s unemployment rate, there were 343,588 people certifying for Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits during the October 2024 sample week. That compares to 359,420 people in September and 356,668 people in October 2023. Concurrently, 40,831 initial claims were processed in the October 2024 sample week, which was a month-over increase of 2,747 claims from September as well as a year-over increase of 122 claims from October 2023.
| COUNTY | LABOR FORCE | EMPLOYMENT | UNEMPLOYMENT | RATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| STATE TOTAL | 19,380,300 | 18,336,500 | 1,043,800 | 5.4% |
| ALAMEDA | 820,900 | 781,000 | 39,900 | 4.9% |
| ALPINE | 480 | 450 | 30 | 6.5% |
| AMADOR | 14,580 | 13,820 | 760 | 5.2% |
| BUTTE | 93,300 | 88,100 | 5,200 | 5.6% |
| CALAVERAS | 22,500 | 21,480 | 1,020 | 4.5% |
| COLUSA | 10,810 | 9,890 | 920 | 8.5% |
| CONTRA COSTA | 547,100 | 520,100 | 27,000 | 4.9% |
| DEL NORTE | 9,390 | 8,850 | 540 | 5.7% |
| EL DORADO | 93,900 | 89,700 | 4,200 | 4.4% |
| FRESNO | 457,600 | 424,200 | 33,500 | 7.3% |
| GLENN | 12,960 | 12,220 | 740 | 5.7% |
| HUMBOLDT | 61,500 | 58,500 | 3,000 | 4.8% |
| IMPERIAL | 76,100 | 61,200 | 14,900 | 19.6% |
| INYO | 8,540 | 8,220 | 320 | 3.8% |
| KERN | 399,000 | 367,800 | 31,200 | 7.8% |
| KINGS | 59,200 | 54,600 | 4,500 | 7.7% |
| LAKE | 28,410 | 26,700 | 1,710 | 6.0% |
| LASSEN | 9,160 | 8,700 | 450 | 4.9% |
| LOS ANGELES | 5,081,000 | 4,773,000 | 307,900 | 6.1% |
| MADERA | 65,500 | 60,900 | 4,600 | 7.0% |
| MARIN | 130,800 | 125,800 | 5,000 | 3.9% |
| MARIPOSA | 7,930 | 7,550 | 370 | 4.7% |
| MENDOCINO | 37,870 | 35,990 | 1,880 | 5.0% |
| MERCED | 121,900 | 112,100 | 9,700 | 8.0% |
| MODOC | 3,290 | 3,120 | 170 | 5.2% |
| MONO | 9,100 | 8,720 | 380 | 4.2% |
| MONTEREY | 223,100 | 211,500 | 11,600 | 5.2% |
| NAPA | 71,900 | 69,000 | 2,900 | 4.1% |
| NEVADA | 49,120 | 47,010 | 2,110 | 4.3% |
| ORANGE | 1,586,100 | 1,520,300 | 65,700 | 4.1% |
| PLACER | 195,500 | 187,200 | 8,300 | 4.3% |
| PLUMAS | 7,560 | 7,140 | 420 | 5.6% |
| RIVERSIDE | 1,165,700 | 1,100,000 | 65,800 | 5.6% |
| SACRAMENTO | 734,800 | 698,200 | 36,600 | 5.0% |
| SAN BENITO | 32,100 | 30,100 | 2,000 | 6.1% |
| SAN BERNARDINO | 1,019,600 | 965,700 | 54,000 | 5.3% |
| SAN DIEGO | 1,589,500 | 1,515,400 | 74,100 | 4.7% |
| SAN FRANCISCO | 550,700 | 530,200 | 20,500 | 3.7% |
| SAN JOAQUIN | 355,300 | 332,700 | 22,700 | 6.4% |
| SAN LUIS OBISPO | 134,400 | 129,100 | 5,400 | 4.0% |
| SAN MATEO | 435,800 | 420,000 | 15,800 | 3.6% |
| SANTA BARBARA | 220,400 | 211,000 | 9,300 | 4.2% |
| SANTA CLARA | 1,030,900 | 988,400 | 42,500 | 4.1% |
| SANTA CRUZ | 132,500 | 125,300 | 7,200 | 5.4% |
| SHASTA | 74,900 | 70,900 | 4,000 | 5.3% |
| SIERRA | 1,400 | 1,340 | 60 | 4.1% |
| SISKIYOU | 17,310 | 16,330 | 990 | 5.7% |
| SOLANO | 204,400 | 193,600 | 10,700 | 5.2% |
| SONOMA | 248,300 | 238,000 | 10,300 | 4.1% |
| STANISLAUS | 249,200 | 232,900 | 16,300 | 6.5% |
| SUTTER | 47,500 | 44,300 | 3,200 | 6.7% |
| TEHAMA | 26,720 | 25,120 | 1,600 | 6.0% |
| TRINITY | 4,740 | 4,490 | 240 | 5.1% |
| TULARE | 212,300 | 191,600 | 20,700 | 9.8% |
| TUOLUMNE | 20,570 | 19,500 | 1,070 | 5.2% |
| VENTURA | 412,500 | 392,400 | 20,100 | 4.9% |
| YOLO | 110,100 | 104,600 | 5,500 | 5.0% |
| YUBA | 32,600 | 30,400 | 2,200 | 6.7% |
Source: EDD
