Rural California Struggles with Nation's Worst Unemployment While Big Cities Thrive

Rural California counties have the lowest job growth in the nation, with some rural counties having unemployment rates near 15-20%
The weak rural job growth is largely due to a high proportion of agricultural jobs that fluctuate seasonally
While big cities grab headlines, rural California struggles most with chronic high unemployment
Top job creating states like Texas and Florida added over 200,000 jobs from Sept 2022-Sept 2023, compared to California's 28,000 jobs added
Possible bright spot - California weekly average wages grew 0.8% year-over-year, 12th highest growth nationally