Politics & Government

Marin's Jobless Rate Rises for Second Straight Month

Slight uptick in unemployment in July comes with few changes across the Bay Area and throughout the state, according to state jobs figures.

 

The unemployment rate in Marin rose slightly in July, while the jobless rate changed little in California and in the Bay Area, according to a report released today by state employment officials.

Marin, which has the lowest jobless rate in the state, saw a small increase for the second month in a row, from 6.6 percent in June to 6.7 percent in July.

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Meanwhile Solano County, which has the highest unemployment rate in the Bay Area, saw a small decrease, from 10.5 percent in June to 10.3 percent in July.

Elsewhere in the Bay Area, San Francisco saw a slight decrease, from 7.8 percent in June to 7.6 percent in July. Alameda County was at 9.5 percent and Santa Clara County at 8.7 percent in July.

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The state's unemployment rate is derived from a federal survey of 5,500 households around California.

California lead the country in the number of new jobs added in July, according to a report published Friday by Matthew DeBord for Southern California Public Radio (SCPR).

According to DeBord, California added 25,200 new jobs in July - which accounts for a whopping 15 percent of all jobs added across the country last month, which was 163,000.

However, the irony is, California still leads the country in unemployment, as well, he said.

"This was a slightly less-good performance than June, but it continues a trend of California adding jobs at a faster clip than the nation as a whole," DeBord wrote.

According to a report last week from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, in July, 44 states reported unemployment increases, two states and the District of Columbia reported unemployment decreases, and four states reported no change.

When compared to a year earlier, 44 states and the District of Columbia reported decreases in the unemployment rate, four states reported increases, and two states reported no change.

Regionally, the West Coast reported the highest unemployment rate - 9.4 percent - while the Midwest reported the lowest rate, 7.5 percent.

"The slow, agonizing slog out of the jobs crisis in California continues. At this rate, we're unlikely to equal even the national unemployment rate for another year," DeBord speculated.

Locally, unemployment in San Mateo, San Francisco and Marin counties also dipped, from 8.6 percent in July of 2011 to 7.3 percent last month, according to an article in The San Francisco Business Times. Total employment for all industries in the three counties was nearly a million in July, at 982,000, according to newly released data from the Employment Development Department.

The article also reports that private-sector jobs rose by 3,200 from June to July, whereas, in past years, the number usually falls by at least 1,200. The article states that most of the jobs were in computer systems design, science, technical services and professional services.

Retail jobs also rose by 1,700 - much higher than in the previous 10 years, when the most new retail jobs created was 100.

"The state's economy is moving in the right direction, however, and once it gets moving — really moving — it could pick up speed," DeBrod speculated.

Government jobs were the one area that dipped significantly from June to July, the Business Times reported. Across the three counties, government jobs shrank by 5,200, down to 130,800.

--Bay City News Service. Also, Patch Associate Local Editor Jennifer van der Kleut contributed to this report.

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