Unemployment rate drops slightly

Local unemployment rates fell slightly in October, even as jobless figures across Los Angeles County rose 0.2%, the state’s Economic Development Department reported Friday.

Glendale’s unemployment rate dropped to 11%, from 11.1% in September. The unemployment rate in Burbank was 10.3%, down from 10.4% the month prior, according to the report.

The jobless figure in the La Crescenta-Montrose area also declined 0.1% from September’s rate, to 5.8%, although it held steady in La Cañada Flintridge at 4.7%, according to the department.

Unemployment in Los Angeles County, by contrast, grew from a seasonally adjusted 12.6% in September to 12.8% in October, although the figures are not directly comparable since local unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.

California gained 25,700 jobs in October, but still has the fourth highest unemployment rate in the nation at 12.5%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

The rate was seasonally adjusted and was up from 12.3% in September and 8% a year ago, according to the report.

Michigan had the highest October jobless rate, at 15.1%, followed by Nevada, with 13%, and Rhode Island, at 12.9%, according to the report.

Although California posted one of the nation’s strongest job gains during the month, the state’s employment rolls are still 687,700 lower than a year ago, according to the report.