Disneyland, despite all its well-publicized labor problems, once again retained the title of Orange County’s largest employer with 30,000 workers, based on the Business Journal’s annual list of biggest employers.
At least six companies had double-digit surges in local employees, led by a 40% jump by Anaheim-based Northgate González Market, a 29% rise at Aliso Viejo-based MicroVention Inc., and a 27% climb at Fullerton-based Albertsons Southern California Division.
Companies with at least 1,000 local employees reported 287,993 on their payrolls as of October, up 1.4% from last year.
The list suggests that larger employers are hiring at a faster clip than small- or medium-size companies. Total county employment rose by 0.9% to 1.65 million year-over-year in October, according to the state’s Employment Development Department.
About 30 firms, more than a third of the 83 listed, reported more employees this year, while a dozen said they cut jobs, and the remainder are Business Journal estimates and couldn’t provide comparative numbers.
Anaheim’s Unhappy Days
Anaheim voters and their recalcitrant city council tweaked the rubric this year in a spat over benefits received by The Walt Disney Co.’s Disneyland Resort. The resort ran into well-publicized headwinds with politicians like Bernie Sanders about low pay and agreed to issue raises to thousands of workers.
Still, one element of their complicated relationship remained unchanged: stable employment.
Disneyland reported flat year-over-year employment, though it held two job fairs in the past year and opened its Pixar Pier attraction in June.
What’s notable about Disney employment is what’s not there—as well as what’s not going to be.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens soon, and while no formal date has been given, expert mouse watchers expect a presummer curtain-raise. Look for the 14-acre expansion of the 100-acre park to result in a job bump next year.
After that? Not so much.
In October, Disney killed a luxury hotel project that it said would have created “1,000 new permanent jobs” when it was scheduled to open in 2021, as well as 1,500 jobs for construction workers.
Double-Digit Increasers
Six firms on the list showed double-digit increases:
• No. 6, Albertsons’ SoCal unit in Fullerton was up 27% to 7,670.
• No. 14, Edwards Lifesciences Corp. in Irvine, was up 16% to 4,652.
Edwards—OC’s biggest public company at a $32 billion market cap—said its employee increase is from innovation in “new therapies to address patient needs” across research and development, regulatory and clinical affairs, quality, and manufacturing.
The heart valve maker also established a group that focuses “on transcatheter mitral and tricuspid therapies [, which] led to significant growth in the hiring of all types of talent to support this.”
• No. 33, Northgate González Market, up to 2,790; it ranked No. 43 a year ago.
• No. 68, Microvention, which has 1,158 workers, moved to a larger office in Aliso Viejo about a year ago.
• No. 79, T-Mobile USA Inc. in Irvine, was up 13% to 1,018.
• No. 81, Largo Concrete Inc. in Tustin, was up 25% to 1,000.
T-Mobile and Microvention are new on the list.
Double Down
Meanwhile, a hospital operator and three banks reported double-digit declines, while others had similar cuts that involved Business Journal estimates in one or more years.
• No. 21, Tenet Healthcare Corp., cut 479 jobs to 3,867, down 11%.
• No. 26, Wells Fargo & Co., eliminated 600 jobs to 3,400, a 15% decline and the largest nominal drop on the list.
Wells Fargo’s numbers fell from declines in home lending and auto units, among other divisions, it said via email.
• MUFG Union Bank and U.S. Bank reduced apiece 175 and 251 jobs, down 13% and 17%, respectively.
• The former Real Mex Restaurants Inc. became Xperience Restaurant Group Inc. and retained its Cypress headquarters through bankruptcy this past summer. It now has 500 fewer local employees, according to our estimate last year and their reported data this year, after closing several locations. It now reports 1,013 local workers, and comes in at No. 80 on the list.
Sears Holding Corp. did not report local employment; we estimated their local employment is down by a third to 1,000.
