by jpitney | Jun 10, 2024 | California Politics, Economic Policy
Manfred Keil and Ethan Sattley at The Sun: California has the highest state unemployment rate, at 5.3%, beating Nevada by 0.2 percentage points. South Dakota is in first place with 2.0%. While we do not see you packing your bags for a move to the Badlands or even a...
by jpitney | May 19, 2024 | California Politics, Economic Policy
Stephanie Breijo at LAT: Federal minimum wage remains at $7.25 per hour, as it has for years, but in 2024, 25 states either saw their minimum wage increase or expect to increase it by the end of the year. This includes California, which in January bumped its hourly...
by jpitney | May 18, 2024 | California Politics, Economic Policy
Don Lee at LAT: California posted another month of anemic job growth in April, keeping the state’s unemployment rate the highest in the country, 5.3%, the government reported Friday. Statewide, employers added a net of just 5,200 jobs in April, down from 18,200 in...
by jpitney | Apr 20, 2024 | California Politics, Debt
Don Lee at LAT: California’s massive budget deficit, coupled with the state’s relatively high level of joblessness, has become a major barrier to reducing the billions of dollars of debt it has incurred to pay unemployment benefits. The surge in unemployment brought...
by jpitney | Aug 21, 2021 | California Politics, Emergency, Environment
Emily Hoeven at CalMatters: Californians who want to know how much progress the state unemployment department has made on crucial reforms will likely have to wait until after the Sept. 14 recall election of Gov. Gavin Newsom. That’s because state lawmakers have twice...