Jobless Rate Inches Up to 6.2% in O.C. : Unemployment: Experts find little significance in the slight increase and remain cautiously optimistic about the economy.
Despite a slight rise reported Tuesday in Orange County’s unemployment rate, economists counseled cautious optimism.
The increased unemployment rate does not darken the “slight but improving picture” that began to develop earlier this year, said Anil Puri, a Cal State Fullerton economics professor.
“We’re moving in the right direction,” Puri said. “I think that increase will continue through the rest of the year.”
The state Employment Development Department reported that Orange County’s jobless rate for April was 6.2%, up from 5.9% in March of this year and in April, 1993. The nation’s unemployment rate was also 6.2% last month. California’s average was 9.1%, and Los Angeles County’s stood at 9.9%.
The slight increase in the local unemployment rate isn’t necessarily a sign that the local economy is in trouble, Puri said. “The unemployment rate number can be very cyclical,” he said, “and it’s affected a great deal by transitional factors. . . . I don’t think you should give the increase too much significance.”
The EDD noted that, though the construction and manufacturing sectors of Orange County’s economy continued to lose jobs in April, services and retail businesses posted gains.
Construction lost 200 jobs, transportation and public utilities lost 100 and manufacturing employment was unchanged. Services posted the largest gain, an increase of 2,700 jobs, while retail added 600 jobs.
“In non-agricultural jobs overall, we’re making improvements,” said Esmael Adibi, an economist at Chapman University in Orange. “From February to March we added 5,000 jobs, and in April we added another 4,000. But the problem is still two components of the economy--construction, which is still not caught up to the level of . . . the late 1980s, and manufacturing, where we’re still witnessing downsizing.”
Jobless Rate
Unemployment in Orange County for April was 6.2%, slightly more than the 5.9% figure posted in March of this year and in April, 1993. The current rate is below the 1993 average of 6.7%.
1993
Month Rate April 5.9% May 6.5 June 7.1 July 7.9 Aug. 6.9 Sept. 7.1 Oct. 7.0 Nov. 6.0 Dec. 5.7
1994
Month Rate Jan. 7.2% Feb. 6.7 March 5.9 April 6.2
Source: Employment Development Department
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