Business & Tech

Murrieta Unemployment Rate Inches Up

While the unemployment rate in Murrieta rose one-tenth of a percentage point in February, it remains one of the lowest in Riverside County, a city official said.

Unemployment rates crept up again last month in Murrieta and the rest of Riverside County, according to preliminary data released Friday.

During February, 8.4 percent of Murrieta's work force went jobless, according to non-seasonally adjusted numbers from the California Department of Economic Development.

That was up from 8.3 percent in January and 8.2 percent in December.

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Riverside County's unemployment rate rose to a preliminary 12.6 percent in February—compared to 12.5 percent in January—as five sectors of the regional economy shrank, state officials reported.

Bi-county data for Riverside and San Bernardino indicated four sectors, including manufacturing and construction, posted gains totaling 5,000. However, the cumulative loss last month totaled 7,100, for a net decline of 2,100 jobs regionally.

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The bulk of the drop was in trade, transportation and utilities and the leisure and hospitality industry, with smaller losses in the public sector, farming and general services, according to the EDD.

A Murrieta city official who keeps a close eye on the numbers said employment rates have improved in areas such as business/professional services, scientific and health care.

"...Which is highly reflective of Murrieta’s economy," said Bruce Coleman, economic development director for the city of Murrieta.

Coleman said Murrieta continues to outperform county, state and federal unemployment rates.

"At 8.3 percent, Murrieta’s unemployment rate is one of the lowest in Riverside County and contrasts with the 12.5-percent unemployment rate for the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario area, the 11.4-percent rate for California as a whole and the 8.7-percent rate for the United States," Coleman said.

"Murrieta’s rate is more akin to and lower than San Diego County’s unemployment number of 9.3 percent and reflects Murrieta’s strong economic linkage to the tech corridor in San Diego," he said.

Not unlike Murrieta, Temecula saw a slight uptick in unemployment rates last month. In February in Temecula, 8.6 percent were unemployed, up from 8.5 percent in January.

"Many national economists are anticipating that the unemployment numbers will continue to fluctuate over the coming period, increasing and decreasing slightly each month," Coleman said.

Menifee had a preliminary jobless rate of 13.5 percent last month, while Lake Elsinore saw 12.3 percent unemployed.

Riverside County cities with the highest unemployment rates were Cabazon at 30.7 percent, Mecca (24.9 percent) and Homeland (24.3 percent).

—City News Service contributed to this report


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