The
National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the recession that began in
December of 2007 ended in June of 2009. While the economic contraction lasted
only 18 months, job losses in California have lasted for twice as long.
The
peak of California employment was in July 2007. Through August of 2010, total
nonfarm employment continued to drop, although the major losses seem to have
abated since last December.
As
I’ve noted before, job losses have been uneven by sector, with private
employment plummeting, while government employment – excepting the
obvious recent census employment bump – has remained relatively flat.