Kern County, CA jobs, unemployment and layoffs

Kern County economy

• 7.9%

  unemployment, Sep 2026

  8.2% the month before

• 417,030

  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 outlook: Steady

Built from public Bureau of Labor Statistics and Census figures. It describes the area, not any one employer in it.

• Private-sector jobs down 0.5% from 2022 to 2025
• Population up 2.3% from 2020 to 2025
• Unemployment 7.9%, down 0.3 points from a year ago
• Sectors adding the most jobs: health care (+9,607 jobs), manufacturing (+1,088 jobs)
• Sectors losing the most jobs: agriculture (−9,542 jobs), transportation & warehousing (−2,132 jobs)

Local job-market news

Recent headlines about layoffs, AI and jobs in Kern County. Each link goes to the publisher.

• CSU Bakersfield conference highlights AI skills to prepare students for workforceBakersfield Now on MSN · Oct 29, 2026
• Maya Cinemas' Bakersfield theater files Chapter 11Yahoo Finance · Oct 19, 2026
• Oil-field services company laying off 53 in Bakersfield, leaving CaliforniaYahoo · Oct 5, 2026

Learn and get funded in Kern County

• Which AI skills each kind of job asks for, with the pay premium.
• Your local workforce board and American Job Centers: training vouchers and re-employment help.
• Grants and funding for job seekers, ranked for your state and situation.
• Unemployment benefits by state, if you are between jobs.

Kern County layoffs

• 11

  Layoff notices, last 12 months

• 1,886

  workers named

  A floor: states may leave out counts

• 6

  employers

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. Stratolaunch40 open roles
2. Northrop Grumman17 open roles
3. Creative Financial Staffing12 open roles
4. Scaled Composites12 open roles
5. Hyundai Motor America9 open roles
6. Clinica Sierra Vista8 open roles
7. Modern Technology Solutions8 open roles
8. Voyager Technologies6 open roles
9. PPG Industries5 open roles
10. Amazon4 open roles

Colleges in Kern County

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.

Laid off in California? How to file for unemployment in California (steps, weekly amount and the appeal deadline).

• Kern/Inyo/Mono Workforce Development Board

  Inyo, Kern, Mono

• 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