Can the Employment Rate Get Any Better?

Amber Schiada

The unemployment rate in Los Angeles has hit record lows, according to a new report from JLL, but it may have bottomed out. “The unemployment rate is unlikely to move much lower, especially as more people enter the workforce and look for opportunities,” Amber Schiada of JLL, says about employment in Los Angeles. “The biggest challenge for employers who are looking to expand will be finding skilled workers. L.A. has one of the most diverse economies in the United States, and this bodes well for steady expansion without much volatility.”

According to the report, unemployment has reached 4% with leisure and hospitality, technology and construction industries adding the most jobs in the last 12 months. In the last decade, 33,000 jobs have been added to the office-using sector. “Steady economic expansion across multiple sectors is driving job growth in LA and pushing unemployment to lows we haven’t seen since the 1960s,” Schiada, senior director of research for the Southwest at JLL, tells GlobeSt.com. “A strong job market is bringing more people into the workforce, too, with nearly 5.2 million people either employed or looking for work, up from a recession low of just 4.8 million in 2009 when prospects were less attractive. The job market is robust for a variety of industries including media and entertainment, construction, healthcare, and traditional professional services and finance, too. With more than 4.9 million employed, we’re 7% above previous peak employment achieved in 2008.”