Unemployment Rate Falls in Encinitas, San Diego County

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA — The unemployment rate in San Diego County was 5 percent last month, down from 5.3 percent the month before, the state Employment Development Department reported Friday.

The decline followed two months of climbs in the region's unemployment rate. The August mark was below the 5.2 percent recorded the same month last year.

In Encinitas specifically, the unemployment rate in August was 4.1 percent, with 1,400 of a 33,700-strong workforce. In July, a 4.3 percent unemployment rate was recorded for the city.

The EDD said the statewide rate last month was 5.6 percent, while nationally it was 5 percent. Neither figure is seasonally adjusted.

For the month, the area gained 500 jobs in retail but lost 1,500 in restaurants.

Over the past year, the biggest job gains were seen in restaurants, with 4,300 more positions; local government, 4,000 higher; administration, 3,000 more; and hotels, up 1,200, according to the agency.

The only sector to lose jobs over the past year was construction, with a loss of 200.

The EDD reported that 80,100 San Diegans were unemployed in August out of a civilian labor force of almost 1.6 million people.

— City News Service contributed to this report.

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