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Kern County, CA jobs, unemployment and layoffs

Kern County’s unemployment rate is 8.4%. Employers filed 11 layoff notices here in the last 12 months. 235 open professional jobs are in its cities.

Kern County economy

  • 8.4%

    unemployment, Aug 2026

    8.7% the month before

  • 414,048

    in the labor force

    Source: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics

  • 910,433

    people in Kern County

    Source: U.S. Census Bureau

  • $67,660

    median household income

    Source: Census ACS

  • 30%

    of workers in white-collar occupations

    Management, business, financial and professional; Census ACS

Kern County layoffs

  • 11

    WARN layoff notices, last 12 months

  • 1,886

    workers named

    A floor: states may leave out counts

  • 6

    employers

WARN notices filed in Kern County, newest first
Notice dateEmployerCity or countyWorkersTypeSource
Dreyer's Grand Ice CreamTakes effect Dec 19, 2026Kern County380Closure TemporaryState record
Dreyer's Grand Ice CreamTakes effect Dec 19, 2026Kern County715Closure TemporaryState record
Randstad Inhouse Services, LLCTakes effect Nov 19, 2026Kern County426Closure TemporaryState record
Key Energy Services, LLC - Bakersfield LocationTakes effect Nov 22, 2026Kern County53Closure TemporaryState record
Dreyer's Grand Ice CreamTakes effect Nov 19, 2026Kern County221Closure TemporaryState record
AstrionTakes effect Sep 30, 2026Kern County28Layoff PermanentState record
WeDriveU, Inc.Takes effect Oct 1, 2026Kern County34Closure PermanentState record
WeDriveU, Inc.Takes effect Oct 1, 2026Kern County15Closure PermanentState record
WeDriveU, Inc.Takes effect Oct 1, 2026Kern County12Closure PermanentState record
WeDriveU, Inc.Takes effect Oct 1, 2026Kern County1Closure PermanentState record
Yerba Mate Co., LLC - Bakersfield/FresnoTakes effect Sep 1, 2026Kern County1Layoff PermanentState record

All layoff notices in the state

Employers hiring most in Kern County

Employers with the most open professional roles in this county’s cities. The county is taken from each job’s city, so roles with no city are not counted.

  1. Stratolaunch46 open roles
  2. Jt422 open roles
  3. Northrop Grumman17 open roles
  4. Creative Financial Staffing13 open roles
  5. Scaled Composites12 open roles
  6. Hyundai Motor America8 open roles
  7. Subsurface Energy Resources6 open roles
  8. Amazon5 open roles
  9. Clinica Sierra Vista5 open roles
  10. PPG Industries5 open roles

Colleges in Kern County

Colleges in Kern County
CollegeCityTypeStudents
California State University-BakersfieldBakersfieldPublic 4-year10,000–19,999

Workforce development and job centers

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

  • America`s Job Center of California-Bakersfield

    Bakersfield · Comprehensive

    Monday - Friday 8 am-5 pm,

  • American Job Center of California -Oildale

    Bakersfield · Affiliate · 661-336-6650

    Monday - Friday 8:00am- 5:00pm

  • EPIC - Envision-Plan-Innovate-Connect

    Bakersfield · Affiliate · 661-336-6460

    Mon-Fri 8am-5pm

  • America`s Job Center of California-Delano

    Delano · Comprehensive · 661-721-5800

    Monday thru Friday; 8am - 5pm

  • America`s Job Center of California, Lake Isabella Affiliate

    Lake Isabella · Affiliate · 760-379-2074

    Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.,

  • America`s Job Center of California - Lamont

    Lamont · Affiliate · 661-635-4094

    Monday - Friday 8 a.m.- 4p.m.

  • American Job Center of California - Mojave

    Mojave · Affiliate · 661-824-7835

    Monday - Friday 8:00a..m.-4:00 p.m.

  • America`s Job Center of California Ridgecrest

    Ridgecrest · Affiliate · 760-384-5995

    Monday-Friday 8 am-5 pm

  • America`s Job Center of California-Shafter

    Shafter · Affiliate · 661-746-8300

    Monday-Friday 7:30am-4:00pm

  • America`s Job Center of California- Taft

    Taft · Affiliate · 661-763-0200

    Monday-Friday 7:30am-4:30pm

Cities in Kern County

Other California counties

All of California

Laid off or looking for work in Kern County?

See what to do first and the jobs open near you.

See your options after a layoff

Sources: Census Bureau and BLS (county unemployment is not seasonally adjusted); WARN notices from California’s published record; job counts from our live job board; IPEDS for colleges; CareerOneStop for workforce boards and job centers.