The Bay Area and California managed modest job gains in November, but the pace of statewide employment increases have begun to fade at the same time the local nine-county region has perked up.
More than half of the job gains in the Bay Area were produced by the East Bay as the tech-heavy South Bay and San Francisco metro region lagged by a wide margin, according to a report from the state’s labor agency.
Downtown San Jose and the city’s SoFA district, looking north, as seen on Dec. 5, 2024. (George Avalos/Bay Area News Group)
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The Bay Area added 3,000 jobs in November — but the East Bay accounted for 1,900 of those employment additions, the report from the state Employment Development Department showed.
The South Bay’s job totals were unchanged while the San Francisco-San Mateo region managed to add just 600 jobs last month, the EDD reported.
California added 11,100 jobs in November and the statewide unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.4%. California has one of the highest jobless rates in the nation. All of the numbers were adjusted for seasonal volatility.
Despite the employment gains in the state, this news organization’s assessment of the EDD figures hints at a deterioration of the California job market.
During the most recent four months from August through November, California averaged a gain of 7,900 jobs a month — but during the prior eight months, from December 2023 through July 2024, the statewide job gains averaged 22,100 a month.
In the Bay Area, the pattern was reversed. In the most recent four months, the Bay Area averaged gains of 2,500 a month, while during the eight months before, the average gain was 1,400 a month.
