Del Norte jobless rate ticks up

California’s unemployment rate maintained its record-low 3.9% in November, as the state’s employers added 28,400 nonfarm payroll jobs, according to data released Dec. 20 by the California Employment Development Department.

At the same time, Del Norte County’s non-seasonally adjusted unemployment numbers ticked upward, from 5.0% in October to 5.3% in November.

Del Norte County’s labor force in November dropped from 9,890 to 9,740 workers. Government continued to be the largest employer in the county.

November’s state job gains contributed to a record job expansion in California of 117 months, surpassing the long expansion in the 1960s.

California has gained 3,414,700 jobs since the expansion began in February 2010, accounting for more than 15% of the nation’s gain over the same period.

The number of unemployed Californians is the lowest since 1989, despite the large gains in statewide population since then.

California’s record low unemployment rate in November coincided with a 0.1 percentage point decline in the national unemployment rate of 3.5% for November.