According to State of California Employment Development Department, the "unemployment rate in Kern County was 6.0 percent in September 2019, down from a revised 7.3 percent in August 2019, and below the year-ago estimate of 6.5 percent."

That shows an improvement in the county, but still puts it far behind the state and the rest of the nation.

The unadjusted unemployment rate for California sits at 3.5 percent, just slightly higher than the national average of 3.3 percent.

The report shows a current "civilian labor force" in Kern County of 392,400, with the unemployed sitting at 23,500.

The labor force includes "self-employed individuals, unpaid family workers, household domestic workers, & workers on strike."

The farming industry continues to be the largest employer in Kern County, with over 72,000 employees. That's followed closely by government (66,100), trade, transportation and utilities (54,000), and education and health services (40,800).

Copies of the report and additional information is available on the EDD website.