Bay Area and California rebound with job gains after months of losses

The Bay Area and California both posted robust job gains in November that represented rebounds from months of feeble hiring trends marred by waves of employment losses, a new federal report released Wednesday shows.

The report, delayed by a weeks-long government shutdown, revealed that the Bay Area gained 4,800 jobs in November, snapping six consecutive months of employment losses for the region, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

California added 32,500 jobs in November on the heels of a puny gain of 1,500 jobs in October, the federal agency reported.

The statewide unemployment rate was 5.5% in November. The government didn’t report an October jobless rate figure due to the timing of the federal shutdown. The California unemployment rate was 5.6% in September.

The South Bay gained 400 jobs in November. The upswing ended four consecutive months of job losses for that region.

The East Bay added 2,400 jobs in November, marking the third straight month of employment increases for the Alameda County-Contra Costa County region. The East Bay had lost jobs for four straight months from May through August.

The San Francisco-San Mateo region gained 2,700 jobs in November on the heels of an increase of 1,100 positions in October.

Despite these gains, the first 11 months of 2025 were dismal for the Bay Area and California.

From January through November, California lost 7,500 jobs.

The Bay Area over the first 11 months of last year lost 21,300 jobs. The South Bay shed 9,200 positions, the East Bay lost 6,600 positions, and the San Francisco-San Mateo region suffered a decline of 3,300 jobs.