BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Almost 9,000 more people are working in Kern County as of June compared to the same point last year, according to information released from the California Employment Development Department on Friday.
The report shows 8,600 jobs were added compared to a year ago.
The biggest gains were made in Educational & Health Services where 2,400 more people were hired this past month, followed by Professional & Business Services (1,100).
The unemployment rate is now at 8.0%, down slightly from June of 2018. However, the rate spiked compared to this May, when unemployment dipped to 7.2%.
Despite the gains, Kern County still lags behind compared to the rest of the U.S. The national average in June was 3.8% while California's unemployment rate was 4.1%.
The oil industry (Mining and Logging) added just 300 jobs to the economy in June while Construction contributed 700.
The only losses when compared to a year ago were in Financial Activities (200) and Information (100).
