County’s unemployment picture improved in February

EL CENTRO – The good news regarding Imperial County’s preliminary unemployment numbers for February is that not only did its claims drop, but both the workforce and the number of jobs expanded.

According to the California Employment Development Department estimates released Friday, Imperial County’s unemployment rate last month was 15.9 percent, compared to 16.5 percent in January.

EDD also reported an 8.5 percent unemployment rate for the state as a whole in January, while the nation came in at 6.2 percent.

Unlike January’s rate, which was a full percentage point lower than December’s number, February’s rate wasn’t improved by a shrinking workforce. EDD reported Imperial County had a civilian labor force of 66,200 last month, compared to 65,200 in January, while having 300 fewer persons (10,500 vs. 10,800) unemployed.

In January, EDD’s numbers for Imperial County showed a loss of 100 jobs, but there were 500 fewer workers counted in the labor pool compared to December.

The biggest job gains locally in February were in service providing (800 jobs) leisure and hospitality (500 jobs), government (300 jobs) manufacturing (100 jobs), and educational and health services (100 jobs). Losses included farm; trade, transportation and utilities, and retail, which all lost about 100 jobs apiece.

For the first time in months, Imperial County was not alone at the top of the list in terms of unemployment rate. It was tied with Colusa County, which also posted 15.9 percent. Plumas County followed at 12.2 percent.

On the other end of the list, Marin County owned the state’s lowest rate at 5 percent, while Santa Clara trailed at 5.3 percent.