NextChapter

California jobs and job market: layoffs, colleges and workforce help

California’s unemployment rate is 5.1%. 51,670 open professional jobs are listed here. Employers filed 383 layoff notices in the last 12 months. Choose a county or city for the same picture closer to home.

California economy

  • 5.1%

    unemployment, Aug 2026

    5.5% the month before

  • 19,499,116

    in the labor force

    Source: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics

  • 39,242,785

    people in California

    Source: U.S. Census Bureau

  • $96,334

    median household income

    Source: Census ACS

  • 43%

    of workers in white-collar occupations

    Management, business, financial and professional; Census ACS

California layoffs

  • 383

    WARN layoff notices, last 12 months

  • 21,034

    workers named

    A floor: states may leave out counts

  • 164

    employers

WARN notices filed in California, newest first
Notice dateEmployerCity or countyWorkersTypeSource
eBayTakes effect Oct 21, 2026Santa Clara County229Layoff PermanentState record
DesigneRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Takes effect Dec 23, 2026Solano County6Layoff PermanentState record
Dreyer's Grand Ice CreamTakes effect Dec 19, 2026Kern County380Closure TemporaryState record
SafewayTakes effect Dec 20, 2026Contra Costa County92Closure PermanentState record
RandstadTakes effect Dec 19, 2026Tulare County91Closure TemporaryState record
Dreyer's Grand Ice CreamTakes effect Dec 19, 2026Kern County715Closure TemporaryState record
Dreyer's Grand Ice CreamTakes effect Dec 19, 2026Tulare County448Closure TemporaryState record
Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. (One Kaiser…Takes effect Dec 18, 2026Alameda County5Layoff PermanentState record
Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc.Takes effect Dec 18, 2026Marin County1Layoff PermanentState record
Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. (1800 Harri…Takes effect Dec 18, 2026Alameda County1Layoff PermanentState record

All layoff notices in the state

Get an email when a new notice is filed for California

One email a day at most, only when there is something new. No account needed.

Employers hiring most in California

Employers with the most open professional roles on our job board right now.

  1. Anduril Industries1,048 open roles
  2. Amazon1,036 open roles
  3. Apple696 open roles
  4. SpaceX614 open roles
  5. Google465 open roles
  6. OpenAI464 open roles
  7. Anthropic387 open roles
  8. General Atomics374 open roles
  9. Qualcomm Inc/De366 open roles
  10. Intuit345 open roles
  11. California State University343 open roles
  12. Northrop Grumman264 open roles

Largest employers headquartered in California

Employee counts with a year are published figures (Wikidata). Other sizes are estimates from our company directory, not payroll counts.

Higher education in California

  • 183

    public and private nonprofit colleges

    Source: IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education

  • about 2,648,000

    students enrolled

    Estimated from size bands

Largest colleges in California

Largest colleges in California
CollegeCityTypeStudents
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis ObispoSan Luis ObispoPublic 4-year20,000+
California State Polytechnic University-PomonaPomonaPublic 4-year20,000+
California State University-FresnoFresnoPublic 4-year20,000+
California State University-FullertonFullertonPublic 4-year20,000+
California State University-Long BeachLong BeachPublic 4-year20,000+
California State University-Los AngelesLos AngelesPublic 4-year20,000+
California State University-NorthridgeNorthridgePublic 4-year20,000+
California State University-SacramentoSacramentoPublic 4-year20,000+
National UniversitySan DiegoPrivate nonprofit 4-year20,000+
San Diego State UniversitySan DiegoPublic 4-year20,000+
San Francisco State UniversitySan FranciscoPublic 4-year20,000+
San Jose State UniversitySan JosePublic 4-year20,000+

All 183 California colleges

Workforce development and job centers

The public workforce board and American Job Centers serving California. They offer free help with job search, training and filing for benefits.

183 American Job Centers in California

Job fairs and business events in California

Hiring events, career workshops, small-business counseling and startup events from chambers, job centers, workforce boards, colleges and economic-development groups in California.

Conferences in California

Industry conferences and trade shows held in California, the ones worth a trip for hiring managers and job seekers. 265 with dates announced.

  • NMSDC Annual Conference & Exchange

    Oct 25 to Oct 28, 2026 · Los Angeles, CA

    Paid ticket. Prices are on a Pricing page not captured.

  • NCSEA Structural Engineering Summit

    Oct 27 to Oct 30, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Ticket $1,445 to $1,895. Regular (Sept 12-Oct 30): Member $1,445, Non-member $1,895. Early rates were $200-250 lower. Members pay…

    Open call for speakers

  • Grace Hopper Celebration

    Oct 27 to Oct 30, 2026 · Anaheim, CA

    Paid ticket. Pricing page was under construction when opened.

  • Everlaw Summit

    Oct 27 to Oct 29, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Paid ticket. Pricing not read on the pages checked.

  • ODSC AI West

    Oct 27 to Oct 29, 2026 · Burlingame, CA

    Free expo floor; session passes $99 to $1,399. Expo pass free by application or $99 guaranteed; in-person from $699 (Learn) to…

  • Satellite Innovation

    Oct 27 to Oct 28, 2026 · Mountain View, CA

    Ticket $595 to $1,395. Civilian $1,395 standard (early bird $1,195 ended Aug 1); Government/Military $795 standard (early $595).…

  • GitHub Universe

    Oct 28 to Oct 29, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Free expo floor; session passes $1,399. In-person pass $1,399; $1,119 each for teams of 4+; virtual pass free; Day of Learning…

  • SACNAS National Diversity in STEM Conference

    Oct 29 to Oct 31, 2026 · Long Beach, CA

    Ticket $350 to $650. Student rates: early-bird $350 member/$450 non-member; regular $450/$550; late $550/$650. SACNAS says the…

  • TCT

    Oct 31 to Nov 3, 2026 · San Diego, CA

    Paid ticket. Registration is open; fees not shown in results.

  • HACU Annual Conference

    Oct 31 to Nov 2, 2026 · Chula Vista, CA

    Ticket $800 to $1,235. 40th Annual Conference, Gaylord Pacific Resort, Chula Vista, Oct 31 to Nov 2, 2026. Regular/onsite rates:…

    Open call for speakers

  • INFORMS Annual Meeting

    Nov 1 to Nov 4, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Ticket $750 to $1,250. 2026 rates: member $750 early / $900 regular; nonmember $1,080 early / $1,250 regular (includes one year…

  • OWASP Global AppSec USA

    Nov 2 to Nov 6, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Paid ticket. Registration fees not stated on the page; member discounts may apply.

  • GamesBeat Next

    Nov 2 to Nov 3, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Ticket $899 to $1,200. Conference Pass $1,200 (listed against $1,600); Indie Pass $899 for freelancers and companies under 50…

  • Veterans in Business National Conference

    Nov 2 to Nov 3, 2026 · Palm Springs, CA

    Paid ticket. See Pricing tab on the Cvent site; early-bird attendees get guaranteed icebreaker spots.

  • NAGGL Annual Conference

    Nov 3 to Nov 5, 2026 · San Diego, CA

    Ticket $2,095 to $3,425. Lending member $2,095-$2,525; non-member in person $3,425; virtual $1,195-$1,995; in-person lender…

  • MedTech Strategist Innovation Summit

    Nov 3 to Nov 5, 2026 · San Diego, CA

    Ticket $2,195 to $2,395. $2,195 store price; $2,395 per attendee on the presenter page.

  • NHCAA Annual Training Conference

    Nov 3 to Nov 6, 2026 · San Diego, CA

    Ticket $1,295 to $1,575. Member $1,295 early/$1,375 standard; government $1,295; non-member $1,475/$1,575.

  • Elastic{ON} Tour San Francisco

    Nov 4, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Paid ticket, price not listed

  • Current (Confluent)

    Nov 4 to Nov 5, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Ticket $699 to $999. Advance $699 (to Oct 10), standard $899 (to Oct 29), onsite $999; the page also says passes are free this…

  • Worlds of Flavor International Conference

    Nov 4 to Nov 6, 2026 · Napa, CA

    Paid ticket. Pricing not published on the pages read.

  • BoxWorks

    Nov 5 to Nov 6, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Ticket $749 to $849. Event pass $749; with Master Classes or Dev Summit $849.

  • UXDX USA

    Nov 5 to Nov 6, 2026 · San Francisco, CA

    Paid ticket. Ticket prices not listed on the site; see USA Announcements & Special Offers.

    Open call for speakers

  • Hackaday Supercon

    Nov 6 to Nov 8, 2026 · Pasadena, CA

    Ticket $150 to $296. Early bird $150, regular $296 plus fees (per Hackaday ticket posts).

    Open call for speakers

  • IAEM Annual Conference & EMEX

    Nov 6 to Nov 12, 2026 · Long Beach, CA

    Ticket About $725. Early-bird full registration $725 for members (deadline Aug 31, 2026); lower student and emerging-professional…

Showing 24 of 333 conferences, 265 with dates announced.

All conferences

California counties

Each county page has its own unemployment, layoffs, job openings, employers, colleges and job centers.

California cities

Cities with open jobs, layoff notices, a job center or a college.

Laid off or looking for work in California?

See what to do first, what California unemployment benefits pay, and the jobs open near you.

See your options after a layoff

Sources: Census Bureau and BLS for population, income and unemployment; WARN notices from California’s published record; job counts from our live job board, taken from employers’ own career sites; IPEDS for colleges; CareerOneStop for workforce boards and job centers. California unemployment benefits.