COUNTY ENDS YEAR WITH SMALL INCREASE IN JOBLESS RATE

San Diego region’s rate is higher than national average, yet trends lower than California average of 5.1 percent

San Diego County ended the year with a slight increase in unemployment but saw a surge in construction hiring.

The county’s jobless rate was 4.3 percent in December, up from 4.2 percent the previous month, state labor officials said this week. San Diego’s rate was higher than the national average of 3.5 percent but lower than the California average of 5.1 percent.

The construction industry added 1,800 jobs in San

Diego County from November to December, the biggest growth of any industry. There were 90,900 people employed in construction to end December — the highest level in 15 years.

“This is good news,” said economist Fernanda Herrera of the San Diego Regional Policy & Innovation Center, “since the housing needs of the region and their accompanying costs are directly affected by labor availability.”

There are many projects fueling the need for construction workers, including large office projects under way downtown — the IQHQ office park and the redevelopment of Horton Plaza — but also more than 4,000 apartments set to be completed in 2024. The biggest projects will be downtown, such as the 431unit West building on Union Street, requiring a large labor force to get everything done. There are also large infrastructure projects ongoing, such as the new Terminal 1 at the San Diego International Airport.

Other industries to add jobs in December were trade, transportation and utilities (mainly in the retail space) with 800 jobs; private education and health services, also with 800; financial activities (real estate, insurance, investments) with 700; and leisure and hospitality (hotels, gambling and restaurants) with 500 jobs.

Gains in those sectors offset losses in manufacturing, which lost 1,000 jobs; the catch-all “other services” category, which lost 1,200 and includes work in laundry, maintenance and religious organizations; and professional and business services lost 1,800 jobs in the legal, scientific, waste management and architectural space.

Herrera said the county’s unemployment rate was 4.6 percent when adjusted for seasonal swings. That compares to the seasonally adjusted U.S. average of 3.7 percent and 5.1 percent in California.

December’s numbers were celebrated by the Biden administration, which noted the unemployment rate had stayed below 4 percent for 23 months in a row, breaking a more than 50year record.

“Such persistently low unemployment carries many important advantages to working people,” said a statement from the White House. “It helps to boost the employment opportunities of groups who are too often left behind in weaker labor markets.”

San Diego County’s labor force — adults who either have a job or are actively looking for one — was 1.59 million in December, down about 1 percent in a year. Compared to big losses during the pandemic years, the labor force was largely stable last year.

In 2023, San Diego County gained a net 23,500 jobs. The biggest jump was 10,500 jobs in private education and health services, which includes work in nursing and social assistance.

It was followed by leisure and hospitality, which added 10,100 jobs; government (mainly education) with 6,300; and construction with 2,700. Trade, transportation and utilities, and financial activities (real estate, insurance, investments), both added 2,800 jobs.

The biggest losses were seen in the high-paying professional and business services category, which lost 10,100 positions. It was followed by manufacturing, down 2,800 jobs, and information (broadcasting, telecommunications, newspapers), down by 800 jobs.

State officials do not seasonally adjust jobless rates for individual counties. Compared with other parts of California, San Diego County was about middle of the pack with its rate of 4.3 percent.

The rate was 5 percent in Los Angeles County, 3.8 percent in Orange County, 3.5 percent in San Francisco County, 3.9 percent in Santa Clara County, 6.6 percent in Santa Cruz County and 5.2 percent in Riverside County.