Holiday Jobs Offset by Drop in Farm Work

The county’s unemployment rate rose only slightly from October to November, as a modest increase in retail jobs was offset by a sharp decline in agricultural positions, according to a report released Friday by the state employment department.

Economists said the unemployment rate of 7.7%, up from 7.6% in October, was a sign that Ventura County is continuing to recover from the recession that has plagued Southern California.

“I think we’re seeing a picture of a county that’s recovering from recession at a moderate pace,” said Bruce DeVine, chief economist for the Southern California Assn. of Governments.

“This year Ventura County seems to be doing better than Southern California as a whole,” DeVine said.

Economists attributed a 10% increase in retail jobs to the onset in November of the holiday season.

They blamed a 30% decline in farm work to slow citrus and avocado harvesting that is expected during winter months.

Agriculture is a seasonal industry and cannot be expected to remain steady year around, said Rex Laird, director of the Ventura County Farm Bureau.

“It’s not unusual to see a decline at this time of year,” Laird said. “Most of those workers will be employed for about 10 months out of the year.”

November’s unemployment rate is down from 8.5% last year, a drop that employment officials attribute in part to gains caused by new-home construction.

“We’ve seen a lot of new jobs open up in the construction industry,” said Patricia Baldoni, job services adviser for the state employment office in Simi Valley. “We’re glad to see those jobs are up, but they’re still not at levels that we’d like to see them.”