Slump deepens: Bay Area and California lose thousands of jobs in March

The Bay Area and California both lost thousands of jobs in March, in fresh signs that the statewide employment picture has darkened as the dismal hiring trends of 2025 worsen.

Both California and the Bay Area have lost jobs all three months of 2025, kicking off the year in brutal fashion.

The Bay Area lost 5,800 jobs in March, according to information gathered from a post on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics website.

The job losses in the Bay Area were widespread. Six of the Bay Area’s seven metro areas lost jobs, while one metro area had no change in job totals, a new government report shows.

California lost 11,600 jobs in March, the government report showed. The Bay Area and California numbers were adjusted for seasonal volatility, and the report measured nonfarm payroll jobs.

The statewide unemployment rate improved slightly to 5.3% last month, compared with 5.4% in February. The jobless rate is culled from a survey of households, while the nonfarm payroll job totals are gathered from a survey of employers. As such, these two surveys can at times move in different directions.

The job losses in the Bay Area included employment downturns in all three of the region’s biggest metro areas.

Here’s how these three areas fared in March:

— The East Bay lost a net total of 1,200 jobs.

— The South Bay shed 1,900 positions.

— The San Francisco-San Mateo region chopped a net total of 2,100 jobs.

So far in 2025, the Bay Area has lost 19,700 jobs while California has lost 54,800 jobs.

In sharp contrast, the United States has added jobs every month in 2025 and for numerous consecutive months prior to this year.

So far in 2025, the U.S. has added 456,000 jobs, or an average of 152,000 jobs a month, according to the federal labor agency.