Posted 3/22/2024, 9:03:04 PM
California Job Market Cools with Nation's Highest Unemployment, Slower Growth Than Estimated
- California has the highest unemployment rate in the nation at 5.3% as of February
- Job growth was overestimated last year - only 50,000 jobs added from Sept 2021 to Sept 2022, not 300,000
- The overestimation was mainly in professional services like lawyers and accountants
- Seven of California's 11 job sectors lost jobs in February, especially construction with 9,600 lost
- California faces a large budget deficit again, estimated between $37.9 billion and $73 billion