Merced County jobless rate rises, but still down from last year

Merced County lost about 2,400 jobs between December and January, pushing the jobless rate up from a revised 12.8 percent to 14 percent, according to numbers released Tuesday by the Employment Development Department.

Analysts said an increase in unemployment is typical across the state for January. Compared to the numbers at the same time last year, the county is in a better place with a jobless rate more than a percentage point down from last year’s 15.6 percent.

“For the year over, Merced is looking pretty good,” said George Marley, a labor market analyst for EDD.

The county’s rate is still well above the state average of 6.9 percent, but it has consistently improved when compared to last year. Marley said the county is trending in a positive direction. It had 3,600 more jobs in January than the same time the previous year.

Compared to the 10 year average, he said, the loss of jobs from December to January was modest. “If anything, it was a little better for some of the industries,” he said. “They usually lose a little more.”

Seven of the 11 industries tracked by EDD saw job losses in January from the previous month. The other industries saw no change.

Government saw the largest decline in jobs at 900, while trade jobs dipped by 700.

Frank Quintero, director of economic development for Merced, said it’s typical to see a shrinkage in jobs in January. For example, many retailers let go of their seasonal help.

He said numbers show the economy is stabilizing from being hit so hard by the economic crash that started in 2006, which closed many businesses in the area. “We’re not seeing that (closures) as we did three to four years ago,” he said. “The economy’s adjusting.”

Developers are taking a “harder look” at Merced, he said. Last week, the city staff met with six site consultants, who were scouting sites for developers and foreign investors.

Still, Merced County’s unemployment rate has improved slowly compared to the rest of the state.

California unemployment fell to 6.9 percent in January as the state’s economy generated 67,300 new payroll jobs, EDD reported last week. That’s down two-tenths of a percent from December.

The latest numbers showed the continuing strengthening of the California economy.

“It is striking how much California job growth is leading the nation now,” said Jason Sisney, chief deputy analyst at the Legislative Analyst’s Office. “According to federal data, nonfarm payroll jobs for the entire U.S. grew by 239,000 in January. California job growth in January made up about 28 percent of the nation’s total.”

All told, the state has added 498,000 jobs in the past year, a 3.2 percent gain.

The latest monthly results also showed that December was considerably stronger than previously reported. Instead of merely 700 jobs being created that month, officials now say payrolls grew by 19,800 jobs.

The January numbers are usually released in February but were delayed because of an annual data revision known as benchmarking. The benchmarking process also means the January unemployment data for every metro area except for Los Angeles was delayed until Tuesday.

Sacramento Bee reporter Dale Kasler contributed to this report.

This story was originally published March 10, 2015 at 2:40 PM with the headline "Merced County jobless rate rises, but still down from last year."