Unemployment Up Slightly, but Economy Still Growing

Reflecting a dip in farm jobs, Ventura County’s unemployment rate rose slightly to 5.9% in June after reaching a seven-year low in April, according to a report released Friday by the state Employment Development Department.

After dropping markedly in March and even more in April, county unemployment leveled off in May. Though it increased last month, the more significant annual comparison shows there were 4,400 more jobs in the county last month than at the same time last year--a sign that the local economy is doing remarkably well.

There were a total of 264,900 jobs in the county last month.

“There’s a lot of business vitality and vibrancy right now,” said Santa Barbara economist Mark Schniepp, who tracks the Ventura County economy. “It’s all very consistent and positive, the things that are occurring right now. It all suggests a very healthy economy.”

The preliminary unemployment figures showed a drop in agricultural labor from 19,500 in May to 17,800 in June. But nonfarm employment--considered a much better gauge of the overall economy--stayed level for the month.

It is up 2.8%, to 247,000 for the year.

“That’s one of the most prolific rates in Southern California, and a much better indicator,” Schniepp said. “Agriculture can be very seasonal, prone to all kinds of strange conditions. Nonfarm is more stable.”

The county figures reflected state and national trends. California’s unemployment rate rose from 6% to 6.2% last month, while the U.S. rate jumped from 4.7% to 5.2%.

Industries considered critical economic indicators--construction and manufacturing--maintained increases gained earlier in the year.

Construction jobs went up from 11,000 to 11,200, a 6.7% increase from the same time last year. And manufacturing jobs, which have seen an increase in the past year due to companies such as Haas Automation and Bungee International relocating to the Oxnard Plain, rose from 31,300 to 31,500, 3.3% higher than June 1996.

Employment in the high-technology sector remained even at 9,600.

The biggest losses were in government positions. Though the county gained 100 federal jobs in June, it lost 700 state and local government jobs, largely due to summer recess for schools and layoffs at Camarillo State Hospital.

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Ventura County Jobless Rate

June 1997: 5.9%

*

Annual Rates

1997: 6.6%

1996: 7.1%

1995: 7.5%

1994: 7.8%

Source: California Employment Development Department