Employment numbers are on the rise again in the Bay Area, but that trend is not likely to last as stay-at-home orders force more businesses to close.
The state’s unemployment rate dropped nearly one percentage point in November to 8.2%. While that is more than double what it was in February before the pandemic, it still shows improvement which has been the trend over the past few months.
“From Oct. 20 to Nov. 20 we had a 0.6% increase in the total number of jobs we added,” said Amanda Ha, a labor market consultant for the Economic Development Department who focuses on San Francisco and San Mateo counties. “Eight industries gained jobs and three industries lost jobs. The month over increase - we added over 6,200 jobs between October to November – is higher than the 10-year average increase.”
Part of the reason for the quick growth is that of course, there is more recovering to do.
Among the industries that gained jobs were real estate, commercial transportation, retail and banking.
“It’s almost Christmas so it makes sense why these industries are flourishing, because they need a lot of manpower,” explained Ha. As for the industries that lost jobs, “leisure and hospitality, it lost 2,000 jobs. And then construction lost 1,200 jobs.”
That drop is likely just the beginning of losses for the hospitality industry as these figures do not account for the stay-at-home orders that went into place in December, forcing restaurants to close outdoor dining spaces.