Posted on 03/05/2010 10:09:52 PM PST by Spktyr
California's January unemployment rate rose to 12.5 percent from a revised 12.3 percent in December, according to the Employment Development Department.
Despite the uptick, non-farm payroll jobs increased by 32,500.
The number of people unemployed in California was 2.27 million - up by 32,000 over the month.
The new numbers show a possible stabilization in the state's unemployment, said Stuart Dorsey, president of University of Redlands and former chief economist for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance.
"We're probably close to the bottom whether this month or next month or the month after," Dorsey said. "We're going to be slow coming off of the bottom, so we're not looking for, certainly within California, any kind of very rapid reduction in the unemployment rate from high levels."
In January, eight of 11 job sectors showed gains statewide.
Construction posted the largest increase over December adding 16,200 jobs.
Information and financial activities as well as professional and business services reported a decrease in 13,400 jobs.
The EDD job figures for January reflect its annual "benchmark" revisions based on new information, including tax records submitted by employers. February figures will be released March 26.
The new benchmarks also provide a look back that shows far more carnage in the job market during the recession than previously believed.
The revisions showed that the state ended 2009 with 13.8 million jobs, 338,400 fewer than what was previously believed. California lost a total of 836,000 jobs during 2009, according to the new data.
The pace of job losses in the state has moderated in the past few months, said Loree Levy, deputy director of public affairs at the EDD.
From January 2009 through September, the state shed an average of 86,400 jobs per month, she said.
From September through January, the average monthly loss dropped to 2,500 jobs.
Unemployment rates for San Bernardino and Riverside counties will not be released until Wednesday.
Brad Kemp, director of regional research with Beacon Economics in Los Angeles, said he expects revisions for the Inland Empire to show higher job losses than originally estimated.
"You're in one of those key demographics that is one of the fastest changing, therefore they'll have underestimated your job losses and probably have to do a more significant revision in your area than other areas like it," Kemp said.
The national unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.7 percent. Employers cut 36,000 jobs, which was below analysts' expectations of 50,000, according to the Labor Department.
The severe snowstorms that hammered the East Coast last month may have affected job losses, but the department wouldn't quantify the impact.
They’re just trying to hurt the Republican and Democrat merchant-government interests by showing such a high unemployment rate. Next thing you know, speculators will hike freight fuel prices and claim that East Asia’s manufacturing hasn’t crashed, just to spite them. ...maybe even drum up more gloom and doom about the peaceful mullahs in Iran building nukes to hike freight fuel even more.
How does that work? The same way Maobama came up with 57 states.
They probably need something like 50-60K new jobs a month (just a guess) to absorb new entrants into the job market. If they only get 32K unemployment would go up.
No they gain jobs. Like any rate the unemployment rate has a numerator and denominator. So despite the denominator going up, which would put downward pressure on the rate, the numerator must have increased enough to cause the ratio or rate to rise.
With an unemployment rate, the denominator is the labor force, ie employed plus unemployed. The numerator is the unemployed.
Well, in our little corner of California (Stanislaus County), the unemployment figures are @ 19% and climbing each month. That doesn’t include those who no longer are eligible for benefits.
Local government will see additional layoffs when the state finishes screwing us out of money for next year.
Just remember- with any Gooberment Figgur, you have to multiply by 2 to get in the ballpark...
I guesstimate ours- in Georgia— is around 20% unemployed. Based on Walkin’ & Talkin’ to people.
Folks here are starting to remember the Carter era with fondness...
32,000 new jobs. How many flunky census workers were added as new jobs? The number of jobs lost are understated.
More B.S. from the MSM.
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