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Tuesday, Apr 29, 2025
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OC Loses 51,000 Jobs in January

Orange County lost about 51,000 jobs, mostly in the leisure and hospitality sector, as the unadjusted unemployment rate remained at 7.4% in January, same as a revised 7.4% in December, according to the state Employment Development Department. A year ago, the January unemployment rate was 2.9%.

This rate compares with California’s December unemployment rate of 9.2% and the U.S.’s 6.8%. The most recent numbers for the county, state and U.S. aren’t seasonally adjusted.

Orange County lost 51,000 jobs for a total of 1.47 million nonfarm employment.

The leisure and hospitality sector dropped 21,000 jobs, with half, 11,300, coming in accommodation and food services and another 9,700 in the arts, entertainment and recreation category.

Trade, transportation and utilities also fell 7,300, with 77% of the drop in retail trade. 

Nine of the eleven sectors lost jobs. The only one increasing employment was financial activities, up 100 jobs.

The state job count fell 69,900 in January, for a total of 15.87 million jobs. In January of 2020, 17.62 million were employed.

California has now regained 39% of the 2.71 million jobs lost during the pandemic, the EDD said on its website.

Leisure and hospitality suffered the largest loss, 70,600, mostly in accommodation and food services.

Six of California’s 11 industry sectors gained jobs in January. Trade, Transportation and Utilities gained the most, 13,700, followed by the government, 3,600.

Go here for more updates on how OC companies are responding to the coronavirus pandemic.

For ongoing, in-depth coverage of COVID-19’s effects on OC businesses, see the Monday print edition of the Business Journal.

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Peter J. Brennan
Peter J. Brennan
With four decades of experience in journalism, Peter J. Brennan has built a career that spans diverse news topics and global coverage. From reporting on wars, narcotics trafficking, and natural disasters to analyzing business and financial markets, Peter’s work reflects a commitment to impactful storytelling. Peter’s association with the Orange County Business Journal began in 1997, where he worked until 2000 before moving to Bloomberg News. During his 15 years at Bloomberg, his reporting often influenced financial markets, with headlines and articles moving the market caps of major companies by hundreds of millions of dollars. In 2017, Peter returned to the Orange County Business Journal as Financial Editor, bringing his heavy business industry expertise. Over the years, he advanced to Executive Editor and, in 2024, was named Editor-in-Chief. Peter’s work has been featured in prestigious publications such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, and he has appeared on CNN, CBC, BBC, and Bloomberg TV. A Kiplinger Fellowship recipient at The Ohio State University, he leads the Business Journal with a dedication to uncovering stories that matter and shaping the local business community and beyond.
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