Is the rising jobless rate a good thing?

An influx of people returning to the labor force drove Merced County’s unemployment rate higher in June, labor market analysts said Friday, but it remains lower than the same time last year.

Economists said the higher unemployment rates, oddly, reflect continued improvement in the economy in June. Thousands of Californians flooded into the job market, in part because of the end of the school year but also because of optimism. Employers were hiring, but not in sufficient numbers to accommodate everyone.

Merced County’s rate was 10.6 percent in June, lower than the 10.8 percent posted in June 2015, according to the state Employment Development Department.

The labor force in the county grew by 1,600 people from May to June. “This is ... a normal seasonal pattern,” EDD analyst Steven Gutierrez said.

Students and others often drive up the number of people looking for jobs in the summer, he said, because school is out. But June’s rate remained the lowest for that time of year since 2007.

The government sector has added 5,500 jobs and manufacturing has added 6,600 in the first six months of the year, he said. The leisure and hospitality sector added 300 jobs in June, the seventh straight month of year-over-year growth.

Gutierrez said farm jobs are expected to rise as late summer approaches.

Unemployment rates rose in California last month despite steady job growth statewide.

The result was a 0.2 percent increase in the statewide unemployment rate, to 5.4 percent, EDD said. California employers added 40,300 payroll jobs during the month. That followed a gain of 27,500 jobs in May.

“The job machine continues to barrel along setting aside all the doubters and skeptics,” said economist Sung Won Sohn, of California State University, Channel Islands, in a note to reporters.

This story was originally published July 22, 2016 at 4:57 PM with the headline "Is the rising jobless rate a good thing?."