Business Employment Dynamics in California — Second Quarter 2023

From March 2023 to June 2023, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in California were 1,028,190, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 993,780, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 34,410 jobs in the private sector during the second quarter of 2023. During the previous quarter, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 48,190. (See chart 1.)

Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in California, June 2018–June 2023, seasonally adjusted

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Chart 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses in California, June 2018–June 2023, seasonally adjusted
Period	Gross job gains	Gross job losses
Jun. 2018	997,244	945,518
Sep. 2018	964,298	914,306
Dec. 2018	1,010,631	898,137
Mar. 2019	967,505	916,579
Jun. 2019	994,462	964,769
Sep. 2019	955,010	907,039
Dec. 2019	1,025,924	907,328
Mar. 2020	934,473	1,037,180
Jun. 2020	754,288	2,651,007
Sep. 2020	1,198,726	962,697
Dec. 2020	1,164,581	850,519
Mar. 2021	1,093,911	842,384
Jun. 2021	1,125,042	919,523
Sep. 2021	1,137,830	897,449
Dec. 2021	1,259,830	818,898
Mar. 2022	1,115,971	869,629
Jun. 2022	1,049,173	1,027,729
Sep. 2022	1,047,601	955,420
Dec. 2022	1,023,199	1,014,015
Mar. 2023	950,611	998,801
Jun. 2023	1,028,190	993,780

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the second quarter of 2023, gross job gains represented 6.7 percent of private-sector employment in California; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 6.2 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In California, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 818,914 in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of 75,435 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 209,276 jobs gained in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of 2,144 jobs from the previous quarter.

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Chart 2. Private-sector gross job gains as a percent of employment, United States and California, June 2018–June 2023, seasonally adjusted
Period	California	United States
Jun. 2018	6.7	6.2
Sep. 2018	6.5	6.0
Dec. 2018	6.7	6.2
Mar. 2019	6.4	6.0
Jun. 2019	6.6	6.1
Sep. 2019	6.3	5.9
Dec. 2019	6.8	6.2
Mar. 2020	6.1	5.5
Jun. 2020	5.3	4.8
Sep. 2020	8.9	9.4
Dec. 2020	8.4	7.4
Mar. 2021	7.8	7.0
Jun. 2021	7.8	6.8
Sep. 2021	7.8	7.3
Dec. 2021	8.5	7.7
Mar. 2022	7.3	6.7
Jun. 2022	6.8	6.6
Sep. 2022	6.8	6.9
Dec. 2022	6.6	6.3
Mar. 2023	6.1	6.2
Jun. 2023	6.7	6.2

Gross job losses

In the second quarter of 2023, gross job losses represented 6.4 percent of private-sector employment in California; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.9 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In California, contracting establishments lost 771,847 jobs in the second quarter of 2023, a decrease of 18,126 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 221,993 jobs, an increase of 13,105 jobs from the previous quarter.

View Chart Data

Chart 3. Private-sector gross job losses as a percent of employment, United States and California, June 2018–June 2023, seasonally adjusted
Period	California	United States
Jun. 2018	6.3	5.8
Sep. 2018	6.2	6.0
Dec. 2018	6.0	5.6
Mar. 2019	6.1	5.5
Jun. 2019	6.4	5.9
Sep. 2019	6.0	5.8
Dec. 2019	6.0	5.6
Mar. 2020	6.9	6.2
Jun. 2020	18.5	16.9
Sep. 2020	7.1	6.0
Dec. 2020	6.1	5.7
Mar. 2021	5.9	5.5
Jun. 2021	6.4	5.9
Sep. 2021	6.1	6.1
Dec. 2021	5.5	5.4
Mar. 2022	5.7	5.5
Jun. 2022	6.7	6.2
Sep. 2022	6.2	5.9
Dec. 2022	6.6	5.9
Mar. 2023	6.4	5.4
Jun. 2023	6.4	5.9

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 4 of the 11 industry sectors in California in the second quarter of 2023. Education and health services had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 46,069 jobs. This was the result of 190,320 gross job gains and 144,251 gross job losses. The construction industry had a net gain of 12,952 jobs. Professional and business services showed a net loss of 31,513 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state. California’s information industry sector had a net loss of 26,252 jobs.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at the Business Employment Dynamics Home.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Third Quarter 2023 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, April 24, 2024.

Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Private sector gross job gains and losses by industry, California, seasonally adjusted
Category	Gross job gains and losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
Category	June 2022	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023	June 2022	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	1,049,173	1,047,601	1,023,199	950,611	1,028,190	6.8	6.8	6.6	6.1	6.7
At expanding establishments	820,022	853,839	788,685	743,479	818,914	5.3	5.5	5.1	4.8	5.3
At opening establishments	229,151	193,762	234,514	207,132	209,276	1.5	1.3	1.5	1.3	1.4
Gross job losses	1,027,729	955,420	1,014,015	998,801	993,780	6.7	6.2	6.6	6.4	6.4
At contracting establishments	823,521	764,111	801,397	789,973	771,847	5.4	5.0	5.2	5.1	5.0
At closing establishments	204,208	191,309	212,618	208,828	221,933	1.3	1.2	1.4	1.3	1.4
Net employment change (2)	21,444	92,181	9,184	-48,190	34,410	0.1	0.6	0.0	-0.3	0.3
Construction
Gross job gains	74,047	73,262	76,366	69,704	85,736	8.0	8.0	8.4	7.7	9.5
At expanding establishments	57,449	61,372	60,845	57,113	71,540	6.2	6.7	6.7	6.3	7.9
At opening establishments	16,598	11,890	15,521	12,591	14,196	1.8	1.3	1.7	1.4	1.6
Gross job losses	78,079	79,701	81,075	79,897	72,784	8.4	8.7	8.9	8.8	8.0
At contracting establishments	64,895	64,829	64,866	63,936	56,636	7.0	7.1	7.1	7.0	6.2
At closing establishments	13,184	14,872	16,209	15,961	16,148	1.4	1.6	1.8	1.8	1.8
Net employment change (2)	-4,032	-6,439	-4,709	-10,193	12,952	-0.4	-0.7	-0.5	-1.1	1.5
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	55,305	54,834	49,943	43,498	46,987	4.1	4.1	3.7	3.3	3.5
At expanding establishments	48,329	49,957	42,717	38,599	41,514	3.6	3.7	3.2	2.9	3.1
At opening establishments	6,976	4,877	7,226	4,899	5,473	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.4	0.4
Gross job losses	46,584	50,872	52,296	50,477	57,277	3.5	3.8	3.9	3.8	4.3
At contracting establishments	38,951	42,490	44,156	42,714	48,274	2.9	3.2	3.3	3.2	3.6
At closing establishments	7,633	8,382	8,140	7,763	9,003	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.7
Net employment change (2)	8,721	3,962	-2,353	-6,979	-10,290	0.6	0.3	-0.2	-0.5	-0.8
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	34,704	34,037	32,239	28,461	29,931	5.2	5.1	4.8	4.2	4.5
At expanding establishments	26,773	28,755	25,778	24,107	24,861	4.0	4.3	3.8	3.6	3.7
At opening establishments	7,931	5,282	6,461	4,354	5,070	1.2	0.8	1.0	0.6	0.8
Gross job losses	31,709	31,910	30,410	32,170	32,255	4.7	4.8	4.6	4.8	4.8
At contracting establishments	25,455	25,498	23,870	24,734	24,083	3.8	3.8	3.6	3.7	3.6
At closing establishments	6,254	6,412	6,540	7,436	8,172	0.9	1.0	1.0	1.1	1.2
Net employment change (2)	2,995	2,127	1,829	-3,709	-2,324	0.5	0.3	0.2	-0.6	-0.3
Retail trade
Gross job gains	92,103	98,878	81,194	92,974	90,829	5.7	6.1	5.0	5.8	5.5
At expanding establishments	76,258	85,923	67,696	81,178	78,782	4.7	5.3	4.2	5.1	4.8
At opening establishments	15,845	12,955	13,498	11,796	12,047	1.0	0.8	0.8	0.7	0.7
Gross job losses	103,611	100,173	99,171	79,974	94,672	6.4	6.2	6.2	4.9	5.9
At contracting establishments	92,243	87,816	86,584	66,439	79,166	5.7	5.4	5.4	4.1	4.9
At closing establishments	11,368	12,357	12,587	13,535	15,506	0.7	0.8	0.8	0.8	1.0
Net employment change (2)	-11,508	-1,295	-17,977	13,000	-3,843	-0.7	-0.1	-1.2	0.9	-0.4
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	35,823	42,825	57,734	33,246	33,536	4.6	5.6	7.4	4.3	4.4
At expanding establishments	28,659	36,689	43,016	27,841	27,380	3.7	4.8	5.5	3.6	3.6
At opening establishments	7,164	6,136	14,718	5,405	6,156	0.9	0.8	1.9	0.7	0.8
Gross job losses	57,366	41,711	39,607	55,193	45,584	7.4	5.4	5.0	7.1	6.1
At contracting establishments	51,909	34,758	31,432	48,985	37,564	6.7	4.5	4.0	6.3	5.0
At closing establishments	5,457	6,953	8,175	6,208	8,020	0.7	0.9	1.0	0.8	1.1
Net employment change (2)	-21,543	1,114	18,127	-21,947	-12,048	-2.8	0.2	2.4	-2.8	-1.7
Information
Gross job gains	39,776	31,389	30,563	17,452	23,409	6.5	5.2	5.0	2.9	4.2
At expanding establishments	34,398	27,159	24,457	14,877	20,626	5.6	4.5	4.0	2.5	3.7
At opening establishments	5,378	4,230	6,106	2,575	2,783	0.9	0.7	1.0	0.4	0.5
Gross job losses	32,648	36,710	36,119	44,700	49,661	5.4	6.0	6.0	7.5	8.9
At contracting establishments	27,865	31,676	30,892	39,852	43,633	4.6	5.2	5.1	6.7	7.8
At closing establishments	4,783	5,034	5,227	4,848	6,028	0.8	0.8	0.9	0.8	1.1
Net employment change (2)	7,128	-5,321	-5,556	-27,248	-26,252	1.1	-0.8	-1.0	-4.6	-4.7
Financial activities
Gross job gains	51,298	46,879	52,930	39,643	47,450	6.1	5.5	6.3	4.8	5.8
At expanding establishments	36,123	36,495	37,139	30,820	37,556	4.3	4.3	4.4	3.7	4.6
At opening establishments	15,175	10,384	15,791	8,823	9,894	1.8	1.2	1.9	1.1	1.2
Gross job losses	50,087	52,502	60,557	50,311	49,126	5.9	6.2	7.2	6.1	5.9
At contracting establishments	38,916	39,581	45,164	34,611	36,456	4.6	4.7	5.4	4.2	4.4
At closing establishments	11,171	12,921	15,393	15,700	12,670	1.3	1.5	1.8	1.9	1.5
Net employment change (2)	1,211	-5,623	-7,627	-10,668	-1,676	0.2	-0.7	-0.9	-1.3	-0.1
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	201,332	194,642	182,994	168,287	162,153	7.1	6.8	6.4	5.9	5.8
At expanding establishments	156,207	162,996	141,411	139,534	133,535	5.5	5.7	4.9	4.9	4.8
At opening establishments	45,125	31,646	41,583	28,753	28,618	1.6	1.1	1.5	1.0	1.0
Gross job losses	185,011	179,842	198,309	204,052	193,666	6.5	6.2	7.0	7.2	7.0
At contracting establishments	154,197	144,244	159,334	159,549	152,543	5.4	5.0	5.6	5.6	5.5
At closing establishments	30,814	35,598	38,975	44,503	41,123	1.1	1.2	1.4	1.6	1.5
Net employment change (2)	16,321	14,800	-15,315	-35,765	-31,513	0.6	0.6	-0.6	-1.3	-1.2
Education and health services
Gross job gains	172,004	179,646	172,372	176,733	190,320	6.1	6.2	5.9	6.1	6.5
At expanding establishments	118,563	129,817	119,355	121,064	141,090	4.2	4.5	4.1	4.2	4.8
At opening establishments	53,441	49,829	53,017	55,669	49,230	1.9	1.7	1.8	1.9	1.7
Gross job losses	190,024	140,317	153,473	134,270	144,251	6.7	4.9	5.3	4.7	4.9
At contracting establishments	115,382	96,322	99,112	89,009	99,930	4.1	3.4	3.4	3.1	3.4
At closing establishments	74,642	43,995	54,361	45,261	44,321	2.6	1.5	1.9	1.6	1.5
Net employment change (2)	-18,020	39,329	18,899	42,463	46,069	-0.6	1.3	0.6	1.4	1.6
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	162,763	168,139	157,455	146,777	141,393	8.5	8.6	8.0	7.4	7.0
At expanding establishments	125,720	129,037	118,207	115,326	112,430	6.6	6.6	6.0	5.8	5.6
At opening establishments	37,043	39,102	39,248	31,451	28,963	1.9	2.0	2.0	1.6	1.4
Gross job losses	123,536	140,099	130,950	130,515	140,703	6.5	7.2	6.6	6.6	7.0
At contracting establishments	99,465	111,436	100,617	101,538	105,888	5.2	5.7	5.1	5.1	5.3
At closing establishments	24,071	28,663	30,333	28,977	34,815	1.3	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.7
Net employment change (2)	39,227	28,040	26,505	16,262	690	2.0	1.4	1.4	0.8	0.0
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	42,410	42,793	40,093	37,928	42,052	8.5	8.4	7.8	7.3	8.0
At expanding establishments	31,362	33,507	30,405	30,664	33,672	6.3	6.6	5.9	5.9	6.4
At opening establishments	11,048	9,286	9,688	7,264	8,380	2.2	1.8	1.9	1.4	1.6
Gross job losses	36,315	33,783	35,635	35,473	39,160	7.3	6.7	7.0	6.8	7.5
At contracting establishments	28,790	25,101	25,495	25,885	28,333	5.8	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.4
At closing establishments	7,525	8,682	10,140	9,588	10,827	1.5	1.7	2.0	1.8	2.1
Net employment change (2)	6,095	9,010	4,458	2,455	2,892	1.2	1.7	0.8	0.5	0.5
Footnotes: (1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately. (2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information. (3) Except public administration.

Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted
Category	Gross job gains as a percent of employment (3 months ended)					Gross job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
Category	June 2022	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023	June 2022	Sept. 2022	Dec. 2022	Mar. 2023	June 2023
United States(1)	6.6	6.9	6.3	6.2	6.2	6.2	5.9	5.9	5.4	5.9
Alabama	6.6	6.9	6.6	6.4	5.9	6.2	5.9	6.1	5.5	5.7
Alaska	10.2	8.5	10.9	10.4	11.0	9.0	10.4	9.2	8.0	8.9
Arizona	6.5	7.1	6.6	5.9	7.0	6.3	5.5	6.0	5.4	6.5
Arkansas	6.1	6.5	6.2	5.8	5.8	5.5	5.2	5.2	5.0	6.0
California	6.8	6.8	6.6	6.1	6.7	6.7	6.2	6.6	6.4	6.4
Colorado	7.3	7.0	7.6	7.2	7.3	6.6	7.1	6.9	6.5	6.6
Connecticut	6.4	6.3	5.9	6.1	6.4	6.3	6.2	5.9	5.3	5.7
Delaware	6.5	8.6	7.0	6.7	6.0	6.9	6.2	7.5	5.2	5.7
District of Columbia	6.1	7.2	5.6	5.9	5.4	6.3	5.0	5.5	4.8	5.3
Florida	7.5	7.8	6.2	6.3	6.8	6.3	5.6	6.0	5.6	5.8
Georgia	6.8	7.1	6.7	6.2	6.4	6.2	5.9	5.9	5.8	6.5
Hawaii	6.0	6.4	6.0	5.5	5.7	5.5	4.9	4.9	5.0	5.2
Idaho	7.1	7.8	8.4	7.9	7.9	8.4	7.5	6.9	7.5	7.5
Illinois	5.9	5.8	5.4	5.8	5.4	5.5	5.3	5.1	4.8	5.3
Indiana	5.7	6.4	5.7	5.5	5.5	5.9	5.5	5.2	5.0	6.1
Iowa	5.9	5.9	6.4	6.0	6.0	6.2	5.9	6.2	5.4	5.9
Kansas	6.5	7.4	6.3	6.1	6.1	7.1	5.5	5.6	5.4	6.0
Kentucky	6.3	6.6	6.0	6.1	5.6	6.5	5.4	5.3	4.9	5.9
Louisiana	6.7	6.9	6.1	6.3	6.1	6.4	5.7	6.2	5.6	6.4
Maine	7.2	7.6	7.4	7.7	7.6	8.0	7.3	6.8	6.2	7.6
Maryland	6.5	7.4	6.6	6.8	6.7	6.9	6.0	6.9	5.6	6.3
Massachusetts	6.1	6.2	5.5	5.8	5.9	5.5	6.1	5.8	4.7	5.7
Michigan	6.0	5.7	5.9	5.7	5.9	5.9	5.8	5.2	4.9	5.3
Minnesota	6.4	6.5	5.9	5.7	6.0	6.4	5.9	5.8	4.9	5.6
Mississippi	6.6	7.2	6.8	6.1	6.3	6.7	6.3	6.2	5.7	6.6
Missouri	6.2	6.8	6.1	6.5	5.9	5.9	6.3	5.8	5.1	5.9
Montana	8.2	8.7	9.2	8.7	7.8	9.1	7.8	7.8	7.1	8.4
Nebraska	6.4	7.1	6.0	6.3	6.0	6.5	6.1	5.7	5.1	5.6
Nevada	6.9	7.4	6.4	6.2	6.6	5.7	5.8	6.1	5.7	6.0
New Hampshire	6.7	6.9	6.7	7.0	6.7	6.7	6.7	6.0	5.9	6.3
New Jersey	6.6	6.8	6.8	6.1	6.8	6.2	6.4	5.9	5.7	5.9
New Mexico	6.7	8.0	6.7	6.8	6.4	7.1	5.9	6.2	5.9	6.2
New York	7.1	6.6	5.9	6.5	6.3	6.1	5.9	6.0	5.1	5.7
North Carolina	6.4	6.7	6.6	6.4	6.1	6.1	5.8	5.7	5.3	5.7
North Dakota	6.9	7.6	6.4	7.6	6.9	6.5	6.3	6.7	5.6	6.7
Ohio	5.9	5.8	5.9	5.8	5.6	5.9	5.5	5.7	4.9	5.7
Oklahoma	6.7	7.4	6.6	6.3	6.2	6.1	5.6	5.9	5.3	6.0
Oregon	6.0	6.7	6.5	7.3	6.4	7.0	6.0	6.2	6.1	6.9
Pennsylvania	5.5	6.1	5.5	5.5	5.2	5.6	5.1	5.2	4.6	5.5
Rhode Island	7.1	6.7	6.9	7.5	6.7	6.7	7.3	6.4	5.9	7.0
South Carolina	6.6	7.3	6.9	6.8	6.4	6.2	5.6	6.2	5.8	6.8
South Dakota	6.6	7.3	6.5	7.2	6.8	6.5	6.4	6.5	5.9	6.2
Tennessee	6.2	7.0	5.8	5.9	5.9	6.2	5.5	5.6	5.0	5.5
Texas	6.6	7.2	6.2	5.9	5.8	5.8	5.3	5.3	5.0	5.4
Utah	7.0	7.5	6.9	7.0	6.8	6.6	6.8	6.6	6.2	6.2
Vermont	7.5	7.2	7.8	8.2	7.4	7.6	7.8	7.0	6.0	7.5
Virginia	6.5	7.5	6.2	6.2	6.0	6.7	6.1	5.8	5.2	5.8
Washington	7.0	7.2	5.9	6.4	6.0	7.2	6.3	5.3	5.5	5.6
West Virginia	6.7	8.1	6.6	7.1	6.1	8.0	6.9	6.4	5.3	6.1
Wisconsin	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.0	5.6	6.0	5.8	5.5	4.9	5.9
Wyoming	8.4	9.2	9.2	8.9	8.4	9.2	8.4	7.9	7.8	8.7
Puerto Rico	6.7	6.2	6.6	5.1	5.8	6.1	5.3	6.1	5.7	4.9
Virgin Islands	8.0	8.5	5.9	7.5	7.4	9.2	5.5	4.7	6.5	6.8
Footnotes (1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Western Information Office

Business Employment Dynamics in California — Second Quarter 2023