Southern California’s antsy bosses trimmed their collective job creation in February to a pace that’s one-third slower than the historical norm.
My trusty spreadsheet, filled with state job figures, found 7.96 million people working in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties in February. Yes, that’s up 30,500 from January, but it’s also 33% below the median 45,200 positions that were added locally in February since 2010.
Bosses have become cautious about their staffing as uncertainty grows over new economic policies, which has added to worries about consumer anxieties, stubbornly high interest rates, and various California business challenges.
You also see the local hiring chill by looking back 12 months. Southern California jobs have grown by just 600 since February 2024 compared to adding 36,000 workers in the previous year and 77,200 annual growth since 2010.
Or ponder the Southern California slowdown this way: The past year’s growth rate of barely perceptible 0.01% compares to the 1.2% increase of the previous 12 months and the 1.5% annual pace during the last 15 years.
Yet cooler job growth translated to lower regional joblessness.
The four-county unemployment rate was 5.3% in February, compared to 5.4% in the previous month and 5% a year earlier. By the way, the median monthly local jobless rate is 5.8% since 2010.
Across Southern California, 477,000 were counted as officially out of work in February. That was down 2,400 in a month but up 26,900 in a year. The jobless count is 7% below the 512,600 median since 2010.
Regional differences
Here’s how the job market performed in Southern California’s key metropolitan areas:
Los Angeles County: 4.58 million workers, after adding 28,700 in a month but declining by 3,200 in a year. Historically, 30,900 jobs were added in the month. Unemployment? 5.9% vs. 5.8% a month earlier, 5.3% a year ago, and 6.5% median since 2010.
Inland Empire: 1.7 million workers, after dropping 6,200 in a month and growing by 5,700 in a year. Historically, 3,200 jobs were added in the month. Unemployment? 5.1% vs. 5.3% a month earlier, 4.9% a year ago, and 6.3% median since 2010.
Orange County: 1.68 million workers, after adding 8,000 in a month and declining by 1,900 in a year. Historically, 10,200 were added in the month. Unemployment? 3.9% vs. 4.1% a month earlier, 3.7% a year ago, and 4.3% median since 2010.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com