THE IE LABOR MARKET PULSE
Monthly Analysis and Insights on the Latest Riverside and San Bernardino Jobs Data
March 2025
Unemployment rate down; transportation & warehousing sees large decline
The Inland Empire’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.3% in January – down from the prior month. The California unemployment rate ticked down by 0.4% to 5.1%, while the US rate ticked down by 0.1% to 4.2%. Today’s reading, the first jobs report of 2025, also showed the region shed 40,400 jobs from last month.
Only one industry added jobs in January, Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (+100 jobs), otherwise all other industries appear to have lost jobs when compared to December 2024. Transportation and warehousing (-15,300 jobs), retail trade (-7,100), and construction (-4,700) saw the largest declines across all industries, and the section below has a longer analysis into these losses. 4,000 people left the labor force last month by either leaving the region or no longer looking for work, bringing the total civilian labor force in Riverside and San Bernardino counties down to 2,231M people.
INLAND EMPIRE JOB LOSSES ACROSS NEARLY ALL INDUSTRIES
The most recent employment figures from the California Labor Market Information Division (LMID) reveal that seasonal job losses have affected nearly every industry sector in the Inland Empire. Between December 2024 and January 2025, the region shed 39,700 nonfarm jobs, decreasing the number of jobs by 2.3%. This job loss is greater than the five-year average of nearly 30,000 jobs lost or 1.8% of regional jobs. The only industry sector to add jobs over this period was professional, scientific, and technical services, adding 100 jobs over the month.
More than 85% of regional job losses are driven by five industry sectors shedding jobs. The chart below shows the sectors with the greatest drawdowns in employment between December 2024 and January 2025.
Figure 1: Monthly Job Losses, by Losing Industry, Inland Empire-Desert Region, January 2025
Source: CA EDD LMID, Industry Employment January 2025
The job losses in retail trade, administrative and support and waste and remediation services, and accommodation and food services are in line with five-year historical trends, indicating these job losses are seasonal. While the retail trade sector lost the second highest number of jobs, losses in this sector were less severe over the month than the historical average. The number of jobs shed in the construction and transportation and warehousing sectors is nearly twice the historical average, indicating these losses are beyond seasonal trends.
The transportation and warehousing industry sector is subject to seasonal impacts during the holiday season, shedding an average of 8,180 jobs between December and January over the last five years. However, the sector deviated from the historical average, decreasing employment by 15,300 jobs from December 2024 to January 2025. Sector job losses are largely a product of reductions in employment from the couriers and messengers subsector and the warehousing and storage industry. The truck transportation subsector, which primarily employs heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers, saw employment gains over the month, indicating demand for these workers remains strong.
The number of couriers and messengers dropped by 15.2% over the month, with 3,900 fewer jobs in January 2025. The couriers and messengers subsector includes establishments that provide delivery of parcels and documents, with messengers usually using a bicycle, foot, car, small truck, or van for deliveries. The job losses in the warehousing and storage industry were more than double the historical average, shedding 10,700 jobs between December 2024 and January 2025, decreasing employment by 7.7%.
The construction sector typically contracts by an average of 2.2% or 2,480 jobs between December and January. There were 4,700 construction jobs in January 2025 than December 2024, representing a 4.1% decrease. The specialty trade contractors subsector shed 3,700 over the month, decreasing by 4.5%, accounting for the majority of construction sector job losses. Establishments in this subsector include those performing specific construction activities such as pouring concrete, site preparation, plumbing, painting, and electrical work, and not those responsible for the entire project.
GROWTH EXPECTED IN THE COMING MONTHS
Despite the challenges presented by seasonal job losses, the Inland Empire’s labor market remains resilient. The unemployment rate decreased over the month, signaling that some job seekers are finding opportunities even amid industry fluctuations. January is traditionally a low point for regional employment, as holiday employment gains made in the previous fourth quarter are lost. Employers typically add jobs to their payroll in February. We will confirm February employment in the next newsletter, to be released March 21st.
While declines in transportation and warehousing and construction sectors exceeded historical trends, other sectors, such as professional, scientific, and technical services, continue to add jobs, highlighting areas of opportunity for workers seeking stable employment. By investing in workforce development and aligning training programs with industry needs, regional stakeholders can help ensure that the region continues to build upon the strong economic growth seen in 2024.
To learn more about this data or IEGO’s Labor Market Research, please email
researchrequest@iegocollaborative.org
