Southern California job growth runs 66% below average

Southern California job creation is running two-thirds below its post-Great Recession norm.

My trusty spreadsheet reviewed employment data from the state Employment Development Department for March, focusing on seasonally adjusted job counts for six local counties. That stats show local bosses employed 9.92 million workers in March.

That translates to Southern California jobs increasing by 43,400 in a year. However, job creation averaged a 126,500 annual pace since 2010. So March’s growth was 66% below the historic pace.

Contrast that job creation with the rest of California. Those 8.23 million workers represented an all-time high, after a 101,300 increase in a year. That growth compares to a 121,600 historic annual pace since 2010, or 17% lower.

Bosses have become cautious about staffing for numerous reasons. There’s the unconventional economic policies of the Trump administration and the ongoing Iranian war. Of course, California’s own business headaches contribute to the hiring slowdown.

Plus, the immigration crackdown has also made a labor shortage in certain industries worse, another limit on the growth of employment.

The U.S. job growth slowdown was even steeper. The nation’s 158.6 million workers in March was up only 260,000 in a year vs. the 1.85 million average annual pace since 2010. That’s a 86% decline.

Here is how Southern California’s major job markets compared in March, ranked by one-year employment change:

– Los Angeles County: 4.61 million workers, up 25,000 in a year vs. 44,300 annual pace since 2010. That’s 44% lower.

– San Diego County: 1.58 million workers, an all-time high, up 13,300 in a year vs. 21,400 annual pace since 2010. That’s 38% lower.

– Inland Empire 1.73 million workers, up 10,900 in a year vs. 37,300 annual pace since 2010. That’s 71% lower.

– Ventura County: 317,000 workers, off 2,000 in a year vs. 2,800 annual increases since 2010. That’s the third-straight decline.

– Orange County: 1.69 million workers, off 3,800 in a year vs. 20,700 annual increases since 2010. That’s the seventh-straight decline.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

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This story was originally published May 1, 2026 at 2:32 PM.