When Less is More: Jobless Rate Drops Again

For the second month in a row it appears that more people are going back to work in Kern County. The unemployment rate has dropped again.

The California Employment Development Department reported the rate was 15.7 percent in May, down from 16.5 percent in April and 18.3 percent in March. It is 12.1 percent in Los Angeles County, up from 11.9 percent in April.

The unemployment rate is 11.9 percent statewide, but Kern County’s statistics are skewed by chronic high unemployment in the agricultural sector. For instance, heavily agricultural Arvin has a 38.7 percent unemployment rate, while Ridgecrest has 9.1 percent unemployed. That is lower than the national 9.3 percent rate.

The unemployment rate in Bakersfield was 11.1 percent in May. It is 12.1 percent in Los Angeles County according to state reports.

This is part of the June 25, 2010 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.

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