Los Angeles County’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 6% in January from a revised 6.1% in December, according to California Employment Development Department data released Friday.
The 6% rate was higher than the 5.4% recorded in January 2024.
In Orange County, the January unemployment rate was 4.1%, compared with a revised 3.7% in December, and above the January 2024 estimate of 3.9%.
California’s seasonally adjusted jobless rate was 5.4% in January, down from 5.5% in December and higher than the year-ago rate of 5.1%.
Nationwide unemployment registered 4% in January, 4.1% in December and 3.7% in January 2024.
Total nonfarm employment in LA County declined by 99,500 jobs from December to January, totaling nearly 4.55 million.
The trade, transportation and utilities sector posted month-over job losses of 24,100.
Inland Empire
Riverside County’s unemployment rate began this year above where it closed out 2024 — 5.3% compared with 5% in December, according to preliminary EDD estimates released Friday.
The January rate was 0.2% below the year-ago mark, when countywide unemployment was 5.5%.
The unemployment uptick was the result of payroll losses throughout the regional economy, according to the EDD.
The EDD published the data outside of its normal schedule because of an annual statistical revision process — called “benchmarking” — that is done in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Labor. The revision process is intended to improve accuracy of results and will wrap up near the end of the month, when the February jobless numbers will be released.
The combined unemployment rate for Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the Inland Empire, was also 5.3%, up from 4.9% in December. San Bernardino County’s unemployment rate was 5.2%.
The latest agency estimates indicated that Mecca had the highest unemployment rate within Riverside County in January at 12.9%. The January rate in Cherry Valley was 9.6%, 8.7% in Coachella, Rancho Mirage’s was 7.6% and East Hemet’s was 7.4%
Bi-county data indicated that payrolls shrank across the board, led by the trade, transportation and utilities sector, which eliminated an estimated 23,400 jobs, primarily in retail as stores, suppliers and consumers began retreating from more robust holiday-season shopping.
Additional job loses posted in the agricultural, construction, financial services, health services, hospitality, information technology, manufacturing and professional business services sectors, which lost an aggregate 16,000 positions.
Miscellaneous unclassified industries also recorded 1,000 job cuts.
