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San Diego County employment declined in September, according to the monthly estimates provided by the state’s Employment Development Department.
The housing boom beneficiary sectors acted as a drag once again. Year over year, the construction sector lost 6,800 jobs or 7.8 percent, the finance sector (including real estate) lost 4,100 jobs or 5.2 percent, and the retail sector lost 3,000 jobs or 2.0 percent.
The accompanying graph shows that while the contruction and finance sectors were still losing jobs on an annual basis, the yearly rate of loss was lower than it had been in recent months. In other words, while those two sectors are still shrinking, they aren’t shrinking as fast as they were earlier in the year. The retail sector, in contrast, declined faster on a year-over-year basis in September than it had at any time during the current downturn.
Outside the housing beneficiary sectors, job growth was positive by 8,800 jobs or .9 percent, but that wasn’t enough to offset the weakness coming from construction, finance, and retail. In total, the region lost 5,100 jobs between September 2007 and September 2008, a decline of .4 percent.
— RICH TOSCANO