Marin unemployment rate drops to 2.2%

Marin’s unemployment rate last month shrank to its lowest level for December in years, according to state data released Friday, but the pandemic’s effects on the labor force continued to linger for employers.

From November to December, Marin’s unemployment rate fell from 2.5% to 2.2%, the California Employment Development Department reported. The rate was the second-lowest for the month in the last 10 years, with the lowest, 2.1%, occurring in December 2021, said state labor market consultant Randy Weaver.

That said, the county’s labor force is still continuing a slow recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The December labor force of 128,800 residents was down by 10,000 residents compared to December 2019, according to Weaver.

“I think the big story for Marin County probably continues to be the labor force,” Weaver said. “Regardless of the pandemic effects, it’s difficult to staff positions when your labor force is getting smaller.”

Marin’s rate was the third-lowest rate of all California counties in December. San Mateo County’s rate was 1.9%, followed by 2% in San Francisco and Santa Clara counties, according to the data. Marin is typically among the counties with the lowest unemployment rates.

California’s unemployment rate held at 4.1% from November to December, according to state data. The state added jobs for the 15th consecutive month in December, with more than 612,000 jobs added in the past year, according to the governor’s office.

“California continues leading the nation’s economy,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said. “December closed out a year of consecutive monthly job growth in 2022 — all as the state continues sending unprecedented support to working families with the largest tax refund in California history.”

The U.S. rate dipped from 3.6% to 3.5% from November to December, with the rate hovering between 3.5% and 3.7% since March, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Robert Eyler, chief economist of the Marin Economic Forum, said the reduction in the labor force might have been caused by several factors, including retirements, residents moving out of the county and residents transitioning to self-employment or contracting jobs that are not accounted for in the state data.

At the same time, there are about 11,000 fewer jobs located in the county in December compared to December 2019. Many of these jobs are in industries such as leisure and hospitality, private health care and education, and nail and hair salons, though Eyler said the losses span nearly all industries except construction and warehousing. He said this is unique to Marin compared to neighboring counties.

“Marin County has not recovered from the pandemic,” Eyler said. “Some of these numbers that are relatively low are suggesting it may not get back there for some time.”

Still, Eyler said Marin County generally weathers economic downturns better than most other counties given the types of jobs its residents have.

“We should expect that given the state of the economy, we should be a little bit more of an uptick in unemployment and slower recovery of jobs and even a decrease,” Eyler said.

December unemployment rates

Marin County: 2.2%
Statewide: 4.1%
U.S.: 3.5%

Corte Madera: 2.4%
Fairfax: 5.1%
Inverness: 5.9%
Larkspur: 1.5%
Mill Valley: 1%
Novato: 2.2%
Point Reyes Station: 0%
San Anselmo: 2.1%
San Rafael: 2%
Sausalito: 2.9%
Tamalpais/Homestead Valley: 1.4%
Tomales: 0%

Source: California Employment Development Department