Labor Market Information
Real-time labor market data
Orange County's economy, tracked every month
Each month, OWA reviews the latest release from the California Employment Development Department and breaks down what it means for Orange County's job seekers, employers, and workforce partners. Browse the monthly reports below.
Monthly reports
Job market cools with the school calendar
Nonfarm payrolls dipped 7,800 as local government shed summer-recess jobs, but health care and hospitality kept the twelve-month trend positive.
A quiet month masks a resilient year
Payrolls edged up just 600 for the month, but private education and health services kept the twelve-month trend firmly positive.
Unemployment falls to 3.5%, the lowest in two years
Leisure and hospitality added the most jobs of any sector as the county's rate hit its lowest point on record in this data.
A second straight month of job gains
Leisure and hospitality led April's growth, while the unemployment rate fell to its lowest reading in nearly a year.
Payrolls bounce back, up 6,200 in March
Health care drove the county's strongest monthly gain in eight months, pulling the unemployment rate down to 3.8%.
The rate improves, but payrolls keep shrinking
Unemployment ticked down even as nonfarm jobs fell for a second month, with government losses driving the year-over decline.
A holiday hangover, not a downturn
Seasonal retail and staffing cuts drove the sharpest monthly drop of the year, though health care kept twelve-month growth positive.
New reports post here as soon as the state releases updated figures each month, typically in the third week of the following month.
Source: California Employment Development Department, Labor Market Information Division. Figures cover the Anaheim–Santa Ana–Irvine Metropolitan Division (Orange County) unless otherwise noted, and are not seasonally adjusted.