Report: Riverside County’s jobless rate rises slightly in October
Despite gains in the regional economy, Riverside County's unemployment rate ticked up last month, according to figures released today by the California Employment Development Department.
The countywide jobless rate in October, based on preliminary EDD estimates, was 5.2%, compared to 5.1% in September.
According to figures, the October rate was roughly a percentage point above the year-ago level, when countywide unemployment stood at 4.1%.
An estimated 60,300 county residents were recorded as out of work last month, and 1,100,700 were employed, according to EDD.
Mecca had the highest unemployment rate countywide in September at 12.6%, followed by Coachella at 11%, Cherry Valley at 9.3%, Rancho Mirage at 7.4%, and Desert Hot Springs at 7.2%.
The combined unemployment rate for Riverside and San Bernardino counties -- the Inland Empire -- last month was 5.1%, up from 4.9% in September, the EDD said.
Bi-county data indicated that payrolls only declined in miscellaneous unclassified industries, which shed about 200 jobs.
The information technology and mining sectors were unchanged, while the public sector swelled by 8,000 positions regionally, mainly as a result of educational institutions going back to regular schedules following summer recess.
That represented the largest single-sector increase. Payrolls also grew in the agricultural, transportation, hospitality, health services, professional business services, financial services, construction and manufacturing sectors, which altogether added an estimated 19,000 jobs, according to figures.
The documented month-to-month rise in Riverside County's unemployment rate was apparently due to year-over-year statistical adjustments and related factors.
Data indicated the statewide non-seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate last month was 4.8%.
