A month after Stanislaus and Merced counties posted their best numbers of the year for 2023 in terms of unemployment rates, the number of folks without work is once again on the rise, according to preliminary data provided by the State of California Employment Development Department.

The data showed that Stanislaus County’s unemployment rate went from 5.8 percent in September to an even 6 percent in October. In Merced County, the rate rose from 7.5 percent to 7.8 percent in that same time.

As for state and national numbers, the rates stayed nearly the same at 4.8 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively.

The biggest culprits for the job loss in Stanislaus County were the farming and manufacturing industries. In a month’s time. Over 400 food manufacturing workers were lost, while there were over 600 workers lost in the farming sector. At the same time, local government education jobs added approximately 1,000 jobs, but they weren’t enough for the unemployment rate to break even.

In Merced County, over 200 workers were lost in the local government sector, excluding education. Over 100 jobs were also lost in non-durable goods manufacturing. Meanwhile, the rest of the market pretty much remained the same from September to October.

In terms of specific cities, Turlock had about 1,800 folks without work last month while Hughson had about 300. Denair, Hilmar and Keyes each had around 100 people without jobs in October.

The market has an opportunity to rebound in November and December, though, as the holidays fast approach. In Stanislaus County, there are currently 870 job openings in the retail industry. There are 165 retail jobs open in Merced County.

Stanislaus County also continues to have a high demand for health care workers, especially registered nurses. There are a total of 1,220 job openings in the health care and social assistance sector, with 418 being for nurses. Top employers include Sutter Health (159 openings), Doctors Medical Center (115 openings) and Kaiser Permanente (86 openings).

Merced County, on the other hand, has a high demand for education services. There are currently 424 education jobs open, many being from UC Merced (204 openings), Merced College (105 openings) and the Merced County Office of Education (58 openings).