Written by Nicholas Vetrisek
Unemployment has now reached its highest level in San Diego history, surpassing even the Great Depression. As of this week, 28.7% of San Diego is now unemployed according to a report by the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG).
Unemployment recently has not been climbing at as rapid a rate as the beginning of the lockdowns, and as a result, SANDAG economists are predicting that the worst of the pandemic has passed. In their latest report, they state that “the phased reopening may signal that the pandemic curve is flattening, and economic improvement may occur in the next few weeks.”
By far the most severely affected area of San Diego is Logan Heights, which has a staggering 42% of residents out of work. City Heights, Golden Hill, and San Ysidro also all have unemployment rates north of 34%.
In addition, South Oceanside and the Cal State University San Marcos area each have over 32% unemployed, and sections of Carlsbad, Oceanside, Vista and Escondido are above 30% unemployment.
In total, 490,000 people are now out of work in San Diego County. While the rate at which people are losing their jobs may have decreased, there is still not enough being done to allow people to return to work.
The stay-at-home order is still in effect and only a few select industries are exempt from it despite only 6,000 cases in San Diego. Regardless of how many #StayHomeSaveLives hashtags supporters of the stay-at-home order put out, it doesn’t change the fact that people need to put food on the table and they can’t do that if they’re forced into unemployment by the government.
