Solano Unemployment Rate Dips In August (Story & Poll)

That big bad snarling bear of an economy grew more docile in August.

That’s because county unemployment figures took a dip, from 12.2 percent in July to 11.6 percent in August, a figure not beaten since April.

And according to Linda Wong, a labor market analyst with the state, Employment Development Department, the numbers aren’t a trick of a dwindling labor force (read: people giving up on finding work).

There were actual employment gains as well as a growth in the number of people working. That means that the local economy improved in August, bucking a months-long trend of higher unemployment.

“When we look at employment from July to August, it increased,” she said.

Of course if you back out a year and look at a comparison from this time last year to now, the numbers don’t look so rosy.  From August 2010 to August 2011 local industries lost 2,600 jobs, with only government gaining 400 jobs and manufacturing gaining 100 jobs.

Unemployment rose slightly in California in August, but remains below the state average in the Bay Area. The state unemployment rate rose slightly from 12 percent in July to 12.1 percent last month, employment department officials said.

August's rate is slightly below that of August 2010, when unemployment stood at 12.4 percent.

The U.S. unemployment rate remains unchanged since July at 9.1 percent.

In the nine-county Bay Area, unemployment remains below the state average, but some counties are above the national average, according to EDD figures for August. Marin County had the lowest rate at 7.8 percent, followed by San Mateo County at 8.3 percent.

Solano County had the highest unemployment rate in the Bay Area.

Bay City News Service contributed to this story.