Unemployment Drops Slightly In Elsinore Valley

Unemployment rates in Lake Elsinore, Wildomar and Lakeland Village edged down again slightly last month, according to the latest data from the California Economic Development Department.

Lake Elsinore’s non-seasonally-adjusted jobless rate in September, based on preliminary estimates, was 13.6 percent compared to 14.1 percent in August.

Wildomar dropped to 12.3 percent in September compared to 12.9 percent for the previous month, and Lakeland Village fell to 21.8 percent from 22.7 percent.

The drops have continued since July, when jobless rates hit a yearly high.

According to the EDD data, Lake Elsinore’s non-seasonally-adjusted jobless rate, based on preliminary estimates, was 14.6 percent in July; Wildomar’s was 13.3 percent and Lakeland Village hit 23.3 percent.

The decreases are in line with county figures, which show unemployment at 14 percent in September compared to 14.6 percent in August.

Bi-county data, which includes Riverside and San Bernardino, indicated the largest payroll expansion was in the public sector, with around 1,700 new jobs added last month, largely in local education as teachers and other workers at schools returned from summer recess.

The construction, trade and transportation and professional and business services sectors altogether grew by 3,600 jobs, according to the bi-county EDD data.

The largest decline in payrolls was recorded in the financial services sector, where 1,000 jobs were shed at banks, credit unions and insurance companies, figures showed.

Roughly 300 jobs were added in the farm sector, marking a slight turnaround from August, when more than 2,000 workers lost employment due to seasonal factors.

According to figures, Riverside County's civilian labor force numbered 908,000 people in September, with 136,400 unemployed.  

The state's non-seasonally-adjusted jobless rate was 11.4 percent, and the national rate was 9.1 percent.