This chart shows the unemployment rate in Fresno County (on a monthly basis) from 2006 to 2016. It is based on the official data compiled by the California Economic Development Department. (click to enlarge)
Some points of interest:
● The highest monthly unemployment rate was 18.4% in February 2010.
● The lowest monthly unemployment rate was 6.4% in September 2006.
●The President of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco says that his goal is an unemployment rate of 4.9%, so we have a long ways to go in Fresno County.
● The unemployment rate touches its lowest level on an annual basis each September (not surprisingly corresponding with harvest season).
● I read a report stating that Fresno County had experienced 59 consecutive months of a decrease in the unemployment rate. That report is not supported by the data.
● How does the decrease in migrant farm labor affect the Fresno County numbers? Hard to tell. Many reports say that the number of migrant farm workers has decreased in the past decade. Yet Fresno County’s unemployment rate in 2016 is much higher than it was in 2006. Fewer migrant workers but higher unemployment? Does not make intrinsic sense.
Here is the link for the source data.