S.J. lags behind state in unemployment
San Joaquin County’s unemployment rate is lagging behind the state, and county officials and local employment agencies are working diligently to close that gap.
As of May, the county’s unemployment rate was 6.2 percent while the state’s unemployment rate was 4.7 percent, according to figures released by the Employment Development Department.
According to Dr. Jeffrey Michael, Director of the Center for Business and Policy Research at University of the Pacific, unemployment has always been higher in San Joaquin County than the state. However, the current gap is smaller than what it has been historically, Michael said.
The gap has to do with the structure of the local economy and the local workforce, Michael said. San Joaquin County has an economy that relies heavily on seasonal work and low-skill occupations which tend to see higher levels of turnover and unemployment.
The workforce and population is generally younger and less educated, characteristics that are associated with higher levels of unemployment, Michael said.
According to San Joaquin County Supervisor Chuck Winn, the county’s economy is driven by agriculture, which means that a major portion of the economy is generated from an industry which can be seasonal. Winn said there are also a lot of jobs in the county that are unfilled.
“The real challenge is how do we get them filled because we certainly have enough residents in our population,” he said. “However, the problem is a lot of them don’t either have the education or the certification to fill those positions,”
Winn said San Joaquin County alone has more than 700 vacant positions that they actively recruit almost continuously. He said that many of the individuals who apply don’t qualify for a variety of reasons.
Winn said a lack of opportunity also plays a role in the county’s unemployment rate. For example, some high school graduates go off to college and don’t come back because the county doesn’t necessarily have the jobs they’ve been working toward, he said.
In order to close the unemployment gap, Winn said county leaders are trying to work with the health care community and three educational institutions in the county to make sure that the institutions are providing the programs that will graduate individuals who will be able to land vacant jobs within the county.
High school dropouts also affect the unemployment rate, Winn said.
“We lose a lot of our young people to dropping out of school and unfortunately, without at least a high school diploma or a GED, it’s very difficult to get a job,” he said.
Winn said the county is developing programs, such as opportunities in vocational training, to attract potential dropouts into staying in school.
“A lot of students who may not desire to go off to college to get a degree can find a skilled occupation and probably receive well beyond a living wage because we do have a shortage of skilled construction workers and other trades,” Winn said. “Hopefully we can take some of these young people and attract them into these programs and have them graduate and be hired into the private or public sector for a career which would provide them a quality of life which without having a qualification or skill wouldn’t be available to them.”
Like Winn, Lodi Chamber of Commerce President Pat Patrick also feels that education is the key to closing the gap.
“The historical key is the more education you have the higher earning wage you’ll have,” he said.
According to Patrick, what is happening on the lower end of the wage spectrum is that due to the increase in minimum wage and the advancement of technology many businesses can automate cheaper than they can pay the escalating minimum wage to workers.
He anticipates that automation will replace many jobs, including fast food and agricultural workers, taxi drivers, forklift operators and truck drivers.
“All those positions that I named, the educational requirement for those job levels are very low,” he said. “Those will be automated. People will be out of work, and so the way to protect yourself is to get education that teaches you a skill.”
In the past year, Patrick said the chamber has been working with the Lodi Unified School District to expand its offerings. After working with the school district they were able to institute a manufacturing curriculum for the upcoming school semester.
The chamber’s Lodi industrial Group worked with the district to develop a specific curriculum that would prepare students for good paying jobs in local businesses.
“To try to keep Lodi’s economy resilient in a time when competition is getting more intense, we have to have a
“All those positions that I named, the educational requirement for those job levels are very low. Those will be automated. People will be out of work, and so the way to protect yourself is to get education that teaches you a skill.” LODI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PRESIDENT PAT PATRICK
knowledgeable workforce in order to keep our employers competitive.”
In addition to the new curriculum, the chamber has also started the Lodi Jobs Academy, a joint program they have with the district to prepare students for middle skills jobs.
The local WorkNet office also offers resources and information on job opportunities.
Rehanna Zaman of WorkNet said the agency provides opportunities to those in the community looking to be employed, such as the farm worker services program. The program transitions farm workers out of farm work and into stable jobs, Zaman said. They are trained for a variety of occupations such as truck driving and welding and once the training is complete, they are matched up with employers. They are also given tools, resources and workshops that teach them how to fill out a resume or job application and contact local employers.