Orange County employers added 15,800 jobs in October, helping push down the unemployment rate to 5%.
The rate was 5.1% in September and 6.1% in October 2013.
OC now has 1,501,700 jobs, up by 2% year-over-year, according to the state Employment Development Department.
The number of government jobs increased by 5,600 to 151,700, with many of the gains coming in local-government employment due largely to “continuing seasonal gains” in education, according to the agency. Government jobs were up about 1.5% year-over-year.
The educational and health services sector added 3,900 jobs for a total of 193,300. The sector grew by 4.7% over the year.
The professional and business services sector added 3,200 jobs, with about 63% of the gains coming in administrative and support services. The sector had 277,200 jobs, a year-over-year increase of about 2%.
Employers in the trade, transportation and utilities sector added 2,600 jobs, nearly half in wholesale trade. The sector had 257,600 jobs overall, a 1.5% growth year-over-year.
Construction companies added 1,900 jobs for a total of 88,400. The sector grew by 10% over the year.
The number of jobs in leisure and hospitality businesses fell by 2,100 as cutbacks continued after the summer tourist season, the agency said. The sector had 193,900 jobs, up about 2% over the year.
Manufacturing lost 500 jobs last month, down about 1% year-over-year to 156,200.
California’s unemployment rate was 7% in October, up from 6.9% in September and down from 8.5% a year earlier.
Nationwide, the rate was 5.5%, down from 5.7% in September and 7% last October.
