Santa Cruz-Watsonville, California Unemployment
The BLS reported that the unemployment rate for Santa Cruz fell 0.0 percentage points in July 2021 to 7.2%. For the same month, the metro unemployment rate was 0.4 percentage points lower than the California rate. The unemployment rate in Santa Cruz peaked in April 2020 at 16.9% and is now 9.7 percentage points lower. From a post peak low of 6.9% in April 2021, the unemployment rate has now grown by 0.3 percentage points. You can also compare Santa Cruz unemployment with unemployment in other cities.
| Unemployment Rate | July 2021 | Month/Month | Year/Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| National | 5.4% | -0.5 | -4.8 |
| California | 7.6% | 0.0 | -5.6 |
| Santa Cruz | 7.2% | 0.0 | -4.3 |
Unemployment Rate: Santa Cruz, California, National
Note: Recessions shown in gray.
Santa Cruz, California Unemployed
The number of people unemployed in Santa Cruz peaked in April 2020 at 22,492. There are now 13,000 fewer people unemployed in the metropolitan area. From a recent trough of 9,087 in April 2021, the number of unemployed has now grown by 405. Santa Cruz employment and jobs data (including jobs lost/gained in Santa Cruz, California) is also available.
| Unemployed Persons | July 2021 | Month/Month | Year/Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz | 9,492 | +119 | -5,568 |
Number of Unemployed Persons
Santa Cruz, California Unemployment History
| Date | National Unemployment Rate |
California Unemployment Rate |
Santa Cruz Unemployment Rate |
Santa Cruz Unemployed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2021 |
5.2% | — | — | — |
| July 2021 |
5.4% | 7.6% | 7.2% | 9,492 |
| June 2021 |
5.9% | 7.6% | 7.2% | 9,373 |
| May 2021 |
5.8% | 7.7% | 7.0% | 9,201 |
| April 2021 |
6.1% | 8.0% | 6.9% | 9,087 |
| March 2021 |
6.0% | 8.3% | 7.0% | 9,181 |
| February 2021 |
6.2% | 8.5% | 7.2% | 9,498 |
| January 2021 |
6.3% | 9.0% | 7.4% | 9,688 |
| December 2020 |
6.7% | 9.3% | 7.4% | 9,626 |
| November 2020 |
6.7% | 8.7% | 7.2% | 9,421 |
| October 2020 |
6.9% | 9.8% | 9.0% | 11,879 |
| September 2020 |
7.8% | 10.6% | 9.6% | 12,605 |
1. Metro area unemployment rates are now seasonally adjusted. The BLS has started publishing smoothed seasonally adjusted metropolitan area data which makes comparisons to state and national data more relevant than the unadjusted numbers. ↩
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