There’s some good news about the job market for the South and Central Coasts. Unemployment is falling.
The California Employment Development Department is reporting that the jobless rate in Ventura County was 4.7% in February, down from 5.1% in January. For Santa Barbara County, the unemployment rate was 5.5% last month, dipping 0.5% percent from a month earlier. And, the percentage of people unemployed in San Luis Obispo County was 3.9% last month, decreasing from 4.3% in January. Employers on the South and Central Coasts have added more than 15,000 jobs in the past year.
California's jobless rate fell to 5% in February compared to 5.3% the month before. The state has gained more than 300,000 jobs over the last year and nearly 2.5 million jobs since the economic expansion began in 2010.