L.A. County Unemployment Rises to 4.5 Percent

L.A. County’s unemployment rate edged up to 4.5 percent in June as more county residents were looking for work, according to state figures released Friday. The end of the school year sent substitute teachers and other school employees on shorter contracts looking for work, causing school payrolls to drop slightly, the state Employment Development Department reported. Also, the local labor force grew by 5,000 to nearly 5.15 million as more people entered the labor force looking for work. The unemployment rate was below the 4.7 percent L.A. County recorded in June 2017. But it was higher than the 4.2 percent unemployment rate the state registered last month and the 4.0 percent national figure. Employers in Los Angeles County reported a net addition of 4,400 payroll jobs in June – less than the 15,700 reported in May – for a total of nearly 4.5 million jobs. The state EDD also adjusts for seasonal factors, such as the end of the academic year; taking that adjustment into account, the monthly gain was 8,800 payroll jobs. The healthcare/social assistance sector posted the biggest monthly increase in June from May levels, up 4,600 jobs, followed by professional, scientific and technical services, up 3,900 jobs, and financial services, up 1,600 jobs. As expected, the biggest loser was education; private education services lost a net 7,900 jobs, while public sector education employment dropped by 2,200 for a total drop in education of about 10,000 jobs.