Inland Empire adds 3,500 jobs

The Inland Empire job market just put up a weird but important month. Total payrolls went up, unemployment edged down, and the region added 4,900 nonfarm jobs in March. But the sector that usually defines the Inland Empire story — transportation and warehousing — went the other way. That matters because this is a logistics-heavy economy, so when overall hiring rises without warehouses leading it, the signal is different. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) ### What actually improved? The broad picture got better. The Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metro area posted a 5.1% unemployment rate in March 2026, down from a revised 5.3% in February and slightly below the 5.2% reading a year earlier. Total nonfarm employment rose from 1,710,700 to 1,715,600. Riverside C(labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) print — it was a month of real job growth. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) ### Where did the jobs come from? Mostly from health care and government. Private education and health services added 6,400 jobs over the month, and almost all of that came from health care and social assistance, which added 6,600. Government added another 2,700 jobs, with local government doing most of the lif(labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov)e economy tied to population growth and public services, not just goods movement. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) ### So why are warehouse people paying attention? Because trade, transportation, and utilities lost 2,600 jobs in the same month. Inside that, transportation, warehousing, and utilities fell by 2,300, and transportation and warehousing alone were down 2,200. Retail trade also slipped by 300. In a region where g(labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov)umber that changes the read-through. The economy grew anyway. Warehouses did not lead it. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) ### Is this just one bad month? Maybe — but it fits a broader cooling pattern in industrial real estate. The Inland Empire industrial market started 2026 with direct vacancy at 7.7%, average asking rents down 6.7% year over year, and slightly negative net absorption in the first quarter. Leasing activity is sti(labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) occupiers are moving more selectively. That is not the backdrop for big, easy warehouse payroll expansion. (kidder.com) ### Why can jobs rise while logistics falls? Because the Inland Empire is bigger and more mixed than the old “warehouse boomtown” label suggests. More residents means more demand for hospitals, clinics, social services, schools, local government, and construction. So one part of the economy can be trimming while ano(kidder.com)tically important, so a down month there still carries outsized weight. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) ### What does this mean for employers? If you run a warehouse or lease industrial space, this report does not scream expansion. It says caution. Companies may still need Inland Empire locations because the ports, freeways, and population base are not going anywhere. But they look more likely to optimize buildin(labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov)ployers, by contrast, look like the steadier source of near-term openings. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov) ### What is the bottom line? The Inland Empire added jobs in March, and that is the good news. But the region did it without help from its signature warehouse engine. That tells you the economy is still growing — just on a different mix, and with logistics no longer carrying the whole story. (labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov)