Los Angeles Job Market Report

LA Job Market Steady at 5.6% Unemployment, But Tech Layoffs and Strikes Create Sector Shifts

3 min · 1. maj 2026
episode LA Job Market Steady at 5.6% Unemployment, But Tech Layoffs and Strikes Create Sector Shifts cover

Description

Los Angeles features a dynamic yet challenged job market amid statewide economic pressures. The Employment Development Department reports California's unemployment rate held steady at 5.4 percent in February 2026, with Los Angeles at 5.6 percent and 282,900 unemployed individuals among a labor force of 5,096,300. Nonfarm payroll employment stands at 4,813,400 in the metro area, reflecting a year-over growth of 0.7 percent statewide but recent monthly losses of 19,900 jobs due to strikes in private education and health services. Major industries include trade, transportation, and utilities with 3,052,900 jobs; private education and health services at 3,552,400; and professional services gaining 4,100 jobs monthly. Key employers span tech giants like Amazon and Meta, aerospace firm Boeing, entertainment powerhouse Paramount, and universities such as USC. Growing sectors feature government adding 5,800 jobs and professional services, while construction declined 4,800 jobs year-over in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area per Associated General Contractors data. Tech layoffs exceed 175,000 positions statewide according to International Business Times, driven by AI adoption and high costs. Trends show job losses in manufacturing, leisure and hospitality, and construction, contrasting national gains. Recent developments include a major strike hitting health services and immigration declines reducing labor in construction and care sectors, per Marketplace reports, leading to absenteeism and delays. The EDD's $16.3 million Workforce Innovation grants support training in Los Angeles via groups like NPower and SoLa Foundation for underserved groups. Seasonal patterns note leisure and hospitality fluctuations, with commuting trends challenged by housing costs and remote work persistence. Data gaps exist for March 2026 figures, due May 1, and localized commuting stats. The market evolves toward AI-resilient roles in planning, security, and training amid corporate restructuring. Key findings: Steady unemployment masks sector losses, with government and professional services as bright spots, but tech and construction weaken. Current openings: Project Assistant (Fixed-Term) at USC in Los Angeles, paying $19 hourly; Senior Integrated Planning Specialist at Boeing in El Segundo; Producer for CBS News 24/7 at Paramount in Los Angeles. Thank you listeners for tuning in, and please subscribe. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.

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148 episodes

episode Los Angeles Job Market 2024: Healthcare Growth and Hybrid Work Trends Reshape Employment artwork

Los Angeles Job Market 2024: Healthcare Growth and Hybrid Work Trends Reshape Employment

Los Angeles currently offers a large and diverse job market, but one that remains uneven across sectors and neighborhoods. According to the California Employment Development Department, Los Angeles County’s unemployment rate has recently hovered around the mid 4 percent range, slightly above the statewide average but below the peaks seen during the pandemic. The employment landscape is dominated by services, with major industries including entertainment and media, trade and logistics through the ports, healthcare, professional and business services, education, tourism, and government. The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation reports that key employers include Kaiser Permanente, USC, UCLA Health, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Sony Pictures, Northrop Grumman, and the City and County of Los Angeles. Healthcare and social assistance, along with technology-enabled roles, are among the fastest-growing sectors, a pattern consistent with national Bureau of Labor Statistics commentary that highlights healthcare, professional services, logistics, and advanced manufacturing as major engines of new jobs in 2026. Film, streaming content, gaming, clean tech, and e-commerce logistics continue to expand, though periodic Hollywood labor disruptions create short-term volatility. Recent developments include a rebound in hospitality and live events, ongoing investment in life sciences and biotech on the Westside and in Pasadena, and growth in electric vehicle and clean energy supply chains across Southern California. Commuting trends have shifted: the Southern California Association of Governments notes increased hybrid and remote work, leading to fewer daily downtown commutes, more distributed office hubs, and persistent traffic congestion at traditional peak times. Seasonal patterns show hiring spikes in entertainment production cycles, summer tourism, and year-end retail and logistics. Government initiatives from the City and County, along with state programs, emphasize workforce training in healthcare, green jobs, and construction, including affordable housing and transit projects; however, detailed, fully up-to-date neighborhood-level statistics remain limited or lag by a year in official datasets. Key findings are that Los Angeles remains a high-opportunity, service-driven market with moderate unemployment, strong growth in healthcare, tech-adjacent and creative roles, but ongoing challenges from housing costs, inequality, and sector volatility. Current openings include a Coordinator, Toys position at Paramount in Los Angeles; a grocery retail role at Ralphs, part of The Kroger Co. in the Los Angeles area; and healthcare-related roles with Quest Diagnostics that include positions in the greater Los Angeles region. Thank you for tuning in and remember to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

22. juni 20263 min
episode Los Angeles Jobs 2025: Healthcare Surge, Tech Growth, and Climate Opportunities Ahead artwork

Los Angeles Jobs 2025: Healthcare Surge, Tech Growth, and Climate Opportunities Ahead

Los Angeles has a large, diverse job market that is growing modestly but unevenly across sectors. The region combines strengths in entertainment, trade, technology, healthcare, and tourism, while facing affordability challenges and pockets of job loss. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Los Angeles metropolitan area unemployment rate has recently hovered around the mid‑4 percent range, slightly above the U.S. average but far below pandemic peaks, with job growth concentrated in healthcare, transportation and warehousing, professional services, and state and local government. The employment landscape is shaped by a few major industries: film, TV, and digital media centered in Hollywood and Burbank; the Port of Los Angeles and logistics in the South Bay; aerospace and defense in El Segundo; tech startups clustered on the Westside; and a large base of healthcare, hospitality, retail, and public sector jobs. Major employers include the County and City of Los Angeles, UCLA and USC, Kaiser Permanente, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount, Northrop Grumman, and Boeing. For example, Boeing is currently hiring an End‑to‑End Space Systems Engineer based in El Segundo, illustrating sustained demand in space and defense engineering. Paramount lists roles such as Inventory Market Specialist in Los Angeles, reflecting ongoing hiring in media and advertising. Whole Foods Market is hiring a full‑time Produce Overnight Team Member in the region, a snapshot of steady demand in grocery and food retail. Recent trends show hotels and tourism still adjusting; AOL reports that Los Angeles County hotels and motels saw about a 1.7 percent workforce decline year over year in late 2025 as higher local wages and slowing convention business pressured margins. At the same time, the clean energy and infrastructure transition is creating new roles; a recent California press release on the state’s “Career Passport” initiative notes that Los Angeles County alone could gain over 100,000 climate‑related jobs by 2030, adding roughly 14 billion dollars to the state economy. Government initiatives focus on apprenticeships, workforce training tied to ports, film production incentives, zero‑emission vehicles, and healthcare expansion. Commuting trends are shifting as more white‑collar roles adopt hybrid schedules, but many listeners still face long cross‑county commutes and limited transit access to job centers. Seasonal patterns include summer surges in hospitality, tourism, entertainment production, and retail hiring spikes in late fall. Key data gaps include the very latest neighborhood‑level unemployment figures, detailed wage trends by occupation, and precise counts of remote versus on‑site roles, though state and federal releases provide broad directional guidance. Overall, the key findings are that Los Angeles remains a competitive, opportunity‑rich job market with moderate unemployment, strong growth in healthcare, logistics, green jobs, and specialized tech and aerospace, but with softness in some hospitality segments and ongoing challenges around housing costs and commute burdens. Thanks for tuning in, and remember to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

19. juni 20263 min
episode LA's Job Market in 2026: Growth With Gaps and Longer Waits artwork

LA's Job Market in 2026: Growth With Gaps and Longer Waits

Los Angeles’ job market in mid‑2026 is moderately expanding but uneven, with solid hiring in key industries alongside elevated unemployment for some groups and longer job searches. The California Employment Development Department reports that the Los Angeles metro unemployment rate has been hovering around 5 to 6 percent, above the national average but below the pandemic peak, with job growth concentrated in services, healthcare, logistics, and entertainment. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the region’s employment landscape is dominated by trade, transportation and utilities, professional and business services, education and health services, and leisure and hospitality, together accounting for well over half of payroll jobs. Major employers include UCLA and USC, Kaiser Permanente and Cedars‑Sinai, the City and County of Los Angeles, ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach–related logistics firms, and entertainment companies such as Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix, and Paramount. Paramount’s careers site, for example, lists a current opening for a Manager, Contract Management and Operations based in Los Angeles in its legal function. Boston Scientific’s careers page shows a Senior Product Analyst position near Los Angeles in Valencia, focused on neuromodulation products and complaint analysis. EFinancialCareers posts a 2026 Full‑Time Analyst role in Consumer M&A with Lincoln International in Los Angeles, illustrating ongoing demand in finance. The Public Policy Institute of California, summarized by SFGATE, notes that while California’s overall unemployment rate is steady near 5.3 percent, job seekers are staying unemployed longer, with average spells near 26 weeks and a rising share out of work more than six months; this pattern likely affects Los Angeles as well. UCLA’s Ralph J. Bunche Center reports that Black Californians saw a sharp rise in unemployment and worsening job stability between 2024 and 2025, highlighting disparities that are also present in the LA area. Seasonal patterns include stronger hiring in hospitality, retail, and film production cycles, but labor economists cited by national outlets warn that 2026 may be one of the weakest summers for teen employment on record. Commuting trends show slowly rising transit use and hybrid work, but detailed 2026 mode‑share data for Los Angeles are still limited. City and county workforce agencies, including America’s Job Center of California sites and events like the AJCC Career Expo promoted by City LA Jobs, are emphasizing training, AI‑driven matching tools, and targeted programs for underrepresented groups, though comprehensive evaluations of these initiatives’ impact are still emerging. Key findings: the Los Angeles job market is growing but remains challenging, with longer searches, persistent inequality, and strong prospects mainly in healthcare, logistics, tech‑adjacent, and creative industries. Thanks for tuning in, and remember to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

15. juni 20263 min
episode Los Angeles Jobs: Growth in Healthcare, Tech, and Logistics as Market Recovers artwork

Los Angeles Jobs: Growth in Healthcare, Tech, and Logistics as Market Recovers

Los Angeles has a large, diversified job market that has largely recovered from the pandemic shock, but many listeners still face high costs of living, intense competition for roles, and uneven growth across neighborhoods and skill levels. The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation reports employment has rebounded with total nonfarm payrolls near or above pre‑COVID levels, led by gains in healthcare, logistics, hospitality, and professional services. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Los Angeles metro unemployment rate has recently hovered around 4 to 5 percent, down sharply from double‑digit peaks in 2020, yet still slightly above the statewide average, reflecting pockets of underemployment and barriers for lower‑income communities. The regional landscape includes major industries such as entertainment and streaming production centered in Hollywood and Burbank; ports and goods‑movement jobs tied to the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach; tech and digital media on the Westside and in Pasadena; healthcare anchored by systems like Kaiser Permanente, Cedars‑Sinai, and UCLA Health; aerospace and defense; higher education; tourism; and a large small‑business and gig economy. Growing sectors include healthcare support roles, clean energy and electrification, warehouse and logistics work linked to e‑commerce, digital content creation, data and product roles in tech, and public infrastructure jobs supported by Measure M transit investments and federal infrastructure funding. The City of Los Angeles notes ongoing initiatives such as workforce development programs through WorkSource and YouthSource centers, local hiring requirements on public projects, and efforts to expand apprenticeship pipelines in construction, green jobs, and entertainment. Seasonal patterns remain visible in film and television production, tourism, retail, and port activity, which can cause short‑term swings in hours and temporary hiring. Commutes are still dominated by car travel, but Metro rail and bus expansions plus rising hybrid work are slowly reshaping commuting trends, with more listeners splitting time between home and office. Data gaps persist around informal gig work, under‑the‑table employment, and very recent month‑to‑month shifts in specific neighborhoods. To illustrate current openings, Wells Fargo is hiring a part‑time teller in East Los Angeles; Fox is listing roles such as bilingual Spanish master control operator and senior product manager in Los Angeles; and Paramount Pictures is recruiting a title payroll analyst based in Los Angeles on a fixed‑term basis. Key findings: the market is diverse and resilient, unemployment has normalized but remains uneven, healthcare, logistics, tech, and media are driving much of the growth, and policy and infrastructure investments are steadily reshaping where and how listeners work. Thank you for tuning in, and remember to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

12. juni 20263 min
episode Los Angeles Jobs: Diverse Growth in Health Care, Tech, and Logistics artwork

Los Angeles Jobs: Diverse Growth in Health Care, Tech, and Logistics

Los Angeles has a large, diverse job market, strongly influenced by entertainment, trade, health care, tourism, and tech, and it continues to add jobs despite periodic layoffs and cost-of-living pressures. The California Employment Development Department reports that the Los Angeles metro area unemployment rate has recently hovered around the mid‑4 to low‑5 percent range, slightly above the statewide average but well below pandemic peaks, with total nonfarm employment near record highs. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, key employment gains have come from health care and social assistance, leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, and government, while motion picture and sound recording jobs remain cyclical and sensitive to strikes. Major industries and employers include Hollywood studios and streamers such as Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix, and Paramount; major health systems like Kaiser Permanente, Cedars‑Sinai, and UCLA Health; trade and logistics tied to the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach; higher education at USC and the California State University system; aerospace and defense; and a growing tech and digital media cluster. Online platforms such as Indeed and Randstad show well over 150,000 open positions in the Los Angeles area at any time, spanning roles from customer service and logistics to software engineering and finance, but detailed real‑time wages and benefits by occupation are not always available, which is an ongoing data gap. Current trends show growth in health care, e‑commerce logistics, supply chain analytics, clean energy, and AI and data engineering roles, while traditional retail and some back‑office roles face automation pressure. Seasonal patterns are driven by tourism, retail, and production cycles, with hiring typically picking up in late spring and ahead of the winter holidays, and softening slightly in early year and post‑holiday periods. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority notes that commuting remains multimodal, with many workers still driving alone but with gradual recovery in transit ridership and an expansion of rail and bus rapid transit, alongside more hybrid and remote jobs that reduce daily commuting for white‑collar roles. Government initiatives by the City and County of Los Angeles focus on workforce development for youth and displaced workers, sector‑based training in health care, construction, and green jobs, and incentives for clean tech and film production; however, listeners should note that outcome data on some newer training programs is still limited. Over the last decade, the market has evolved from a heavy reliance on entertainment and real estate toward a broader base that includes start‑ups, biotech, and advanced manufacturing, even as high housing costs and inequality remain important constraints on long‑term labor supply. As of now, examples of active openings include a Specialty RN in Labor and Delivery at Kaiser Permanente in Los Angeles, a remote Director of Data Engineering and Architecture role based in Los Angeles with Ceribell on Monster, and a Supply Chain Analytics Lead role that lists Los Angeles as one of its work locations for Nestlé. Key findings: Los Angeles offers a deep and diversified employment base with moderate unemployment, strong growth in health care, logistics, and data‑driven roles, continued but volatile opportunity in entertainment, and active government efforts to align training with emerging sectors, though housing costs and patchy data on job quality and outcomes remain challenges listeners should watch. Thank you for tuning in, and be sure to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

8. juni 20264 min