LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Despite the tapering off of the annual agricultural harvest, Lake County's September unemployment showed improvement over the previous month, according to new state data.
The Employment Development Department said Lake County had a September unemployment rate of 6 percent, down from a revised 6.3 percent in August and the 6.5 percent estimate of September 2015.
Across California, in September the unemployment rate remained at 5.5 percent for the third straight month, compared with 6 percent the previous September, according to the state data.
On the national level, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that unemployment in September was 5 percent, up slightly from 4.9 percent, but down from the 5.1 percent reported in September 2015.
Lake County's September unemployment ranked it No. 35 of California's 58 counties, according to the report. San Mateo County, with a 3.1-percent unemployment rate, continued its hold on the No. 1 spot, while Imperial County remained at No. 58 with 22.7 percent.
While Lake County's “total farm” category dropped 25.3 percent of its jobs – or about 490 positions – in September, the county's overall number of unemployed people was 1,820, down 80 from the previous month, according to the Employment Development Department.
A number of other categories like wholesale trade (-6.1 percent), leisure and hospitality (-5.1 percent), financial activities (-2.4 percent) and other services (-1.9 percent) also were down, while categories showing upward trends included service providing (0.8 percent), goods producing (1.7 percent) and government (3.6 percent).
The Employment Development Department said California added 30,000 jobs in September, bringing the number of nonfarm payroll jobs in the state to 16,549,600, according to a survey of 58,000 California businesses. Employers in the state added 379,800 jobs from September 2015 to September 2016, a 2.3 percent increase.
The federal survey of 5,500 households used to determine the unemployment rate showed that 18,279,000 people were employed in California in September, up 109,000 from August, and up 444,000 from September 2015.
That survey showed that 1,070,000 people were unemployed in the state last month, up 9,000 from August, but down 65,000 from September 2015.
Statewide, seven sectors added jobs in September: leisure and hospitality; government; educational and health services; construction; information; professional and business services; and other services, the Employment Development Department said.
The state report said four industries lost jobs statewide last month: manufacturing; trade, transportation and utilities; financial activities; and mining and logging.
In year-over gains, nine sectors added jobs across California: professional and business services; educational and health services; leisure and hospitality; government; construction; trade, transportation and utilities; information; financial activities; and other services. Year-over losses were reported in two sectors: manufacturing, and mining and logging.
The Employment Development Department said that 362,253 people received regular
Unemployment Insurance benefits during the September survey week, compared with 352,085 in August and 343,419 in September of last year.
At the same time, the state said new claims for Unemployment Insurance totaled 38,277 in September, compared with 39,095 in August and 40,821 in September 2015.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.