San Joaquin County Employment and Jobs (2024-2025)

San Joaquin County

Sep 8

San Joaquin County and Lodi lead the nation in job growth with a 5.5% annual employment increase, marking a profound shift from agricultural roots to a diversified economic powerhouse. California's and the US's more diverse and tech centric economies have lower unemployment rates but flatter job growth.

Unemployment Trends & Labor Market Performance

Month	Stockton-Lodi MSA Rate	California Rate	US Rate
Sep 2024	5.4%	N/A	N/A
Oct 2024	5.7%	N/A	N/A
Nov 2024	6.2%	N/A	N/A
Dec 2024	6.4%	N/A	N/A
Jan 2025	6.9%	N/A	N/A
Feb 2025	6.7%	N/A	N/A
Mar 2025	6.8%	N/A	N/A
Apr 2025	6.3%	N/A	N/A
May 2025	5.7%	5.0%	4.0%
Jun 2025	6.5%	5.8%	4.4%
Jul 2025	6.7%	6.1%	4.6%

Unemployment rates fluctuated between 5.4%-6.9%. Despite volatility, recent rates remain below long-term average, indicative of sustained economic improvement and seasonality.

Sectoral Employment Composition

Industry Sector	Growth Trend 2024	Employment Share
Transportation & Warehousing	Moderate Growth (+20,000 projected 2025-2050)	19.8%
Educational & Health Services	Strong Growth (+6.2% in 2024)	~12%
Trade, Transportation & Utilities	Moderate Growth	~15%
Government	Steady Growth	~8%
Professional & Business Services	Modest Growth	~6%
Manufacturing	Slight Decline (-3.3%)	~8%
Construction	Modest Growth (+4,800 jobs projected)	~5%
Agriculture	Employment Decline	7.2%
Information	Decline	~1%
Financial Activities	Decline	~4%

Transportation & Warehousing now dominates (19.8%). Healthcare and educational services are surging; agriculture and manufacturing are trending down. Economic diversification underpins resilience.

Key Employment & Economic Statistics

Metric	San Joaquin County Value
Total Civilian Labor Force (Jul 2025)	376,400
Total Employment (Jul 2025)	349,200
Total Unemployment (Jul 2025)	27,200
Total Nonfarm Employment (2024)	290,200
Employment Growth Rate (2023-2024)	5.5%
Five-Year Job Growth (2019-2024)	16.45%
Agricultural Jobs (2022)	27,004
Healthcare Jobs Share	5.2%
Transportation/Warehousing Jobs Share	19.8%

Major Employers & Regional Transformation

Company/Sector	Impact
Amazon (E-commerce/Fulfillment)	Major fulfillment centers, significant employment
Wayfair (E-commerce)	Large e-commerce hub operations
Target Distribution	Distribution center operations
Williams Sonoma	Distribution operations
Niagara Bottling	Expansion in Stockton
Healthcare Systems	~14,000 new jobs projected 2025-2050
Educational Institutions	Continued growth in education services
Agricultural Sector	34,000+ jobs, $4.2B economic impact
Small Business Development	$645M capital investments, 10,000+ jobs (2023)

Amazon’s expansion is transformational, joined by major retailers and growing healthcare systems. Small businesses contributed over $645M in investment and 10,000+ new jobs.

Wages & Quality of Work

Average hourly wage (May 2024): $30.59. Top groups:
Legal ($66.09), Management ($62.20), Healthcare/Technical ($59.47).
Agricultural wages are rising faster than inflation, a sign of improved job quality as sector modernizes.

Challenges & Future Outlook

Persistent unemployment gaps and sectoral shifts present ongoing challenges. Region-wide initiatives and infrastructure investments continue to support resilience and future growth, positioning Lodi and San Joaquin County as leaders in diversified job creation.

References

EmploymentEconomy

Don Bradford