California EDD

Applications for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell to 196,000 last week, marking the lowest level since mid-July and coming in far below expert expectations.

Long lines persist at the Oakland EDD office on Oakport Street despite the agency saying many issues have been resolved.

Bay Area residents say the EDD's phone lines are "impossible" to get through to, and at the Oakland office, they face long lines of hundreds of people waiting to get help.

The rate of unemployment in California is about 5.6%, with tech and entertainment seeing large cuts.

Friday's latest national jobs reports for July show a gain of 73,000 jobs; the weakest gain in 10 months.

California has tied with Nevada with the worst unemployment rate in the nation. The question is: is this a quirk or the beginning of a Golden State jobs drought?           

Thursday and Friday's employment and unemployment reports were a big surprise, suggesting the U.S. economy is still a strong generator of jobs.

Employment lawyer and former Employment and Development Director Michael Bernick says January's addition of 143,000 new jobs is less than half of December's super gain of 309,000 jobs. 

The overall U.S. unemployment rate is hovering at a historically low 4.1%.

Though the vast majority of economists and analysts saw the U.S. gaining about 144,000 new jobs in September, the actual number blew those estimates away at 254,000. 

The nation got a very good report card on the already remarkably strong job market with better-than-expected results, many of which are better than before the pandemic. Except for nagging inflation, the U.S. economy is booming and the national jobs report proves it.

The nation's jobs market is still moving ahead, but a slight slower pace. It’s, a Goldilocks pace that is neither too hot or too cold.   

The year of 2023 was both reserved and raucous in terms of the labor market cooling and labor unions colliding with employers. As every year and using the latest numbers available, we look at the evolution of employment year over year.

May's job gains of 339,000 were surprising, unexpected and across all sectors of the economy. They are so high, they might be considered inflationary.

The latest jobs reports seem to continue to defy economic gravity. Despite the bank scare, massive tech layoffs and a slowing economy, the job market remains robust with 236,000 new jobs with unemployment at rock bottom; 3.6%.

The EDD is accusing some pandemic-era claimants of fraud and demanding repayment, years after their applications were approved. In some cases, current wages are being garnished to claw back the unemployment money, even before appeals are filed.

Evidence is mounting that changes in the California job market may be catching up with years of unfettered success and job growth. It is a very mixed situation.