What You Need to Know: With the federal government shutdown now ended, California is coordinating with federal data analysts to quickly catch up on state labor market data. The Employment Development Department will start with releasing the September 2025 unemployment rate and industry employment data on December 5. The release schedule for state October and November 2025 data has not yet been finalized as the Department awaits access to survey data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In addition, federal workers affected by the shutdown who receive back-pay for the same time they also collected unemployment benefits, will receive important information about paying back those benefits.
SACRAMENTO — The Employment Development Department (EDD) announced today that California will not publish October 2025 employment data on November 21 as planned, following significant disruptions caused by the now-ended federal government shutdown. This marks an unprecedented second consecutive month of delayed statewide labor market reporting.
"Our labor market data is essential for policymakers, businesses, and communities making decisions that affect millions of Californians. When that information isn’t available, it creates uncertainty in our economy — just as the shutdown created uncertainty for thousands of federal workers and their families. EDD is committed to releasing updated state labor data as soon as possible."
Fortunately, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was able to administer the core federal surveys that states rely on to produce official monthly labor market reports for the month of September, just before the shutdown occurred. However, the shutdown did temporarily stop the last step in the process of analyzing the data and finalizing the estimates. EDD will now be able to provide those September labor market estimates for California on December 5.
Unfortunately, only one of those core employment surveys was able to continue during the shutdown. The BLS has stated the household survey data is not able to be retroactively collected. This means that when EDD is able to release October data, it will only include establishment survey (jobs) data for the month of October, and not the estimated monthly unemployment rate that relies on the household survey.
At the national level, BLS has indicated that they intend to issue the establishment survey data for October 2025 along with more complete data for the month of November on Tuesday, December 16, 2025. EDD will provide an update on a release schedule for California October and November data as soon as states can determine when they can access BLS survey data and can conclude state analysis for labor data estimates.
Federal Worker Unemployment Benefits and Repayment Instructions
EDD continues to assist workers impacted by the federal government shutdown through its full range of unemployment and reemployment services.
During the shutdown, which ran from October 1 through November 12, federal workers in California filed 6,376 unemployment claims. This total does not include military worker claims which did not see any noticeable impact. By comparison, during the same period last year when there was not a government shutdown, a total of 654 federal workers had filed unemployment claims.
Federal workers who received benefits and later receive back-pay from their employer for the same period may be required to repay those benefits. EDD will determine their eligibility for benefits and mail a Notice of Overpayment with repayment instructions for those required to repay. Workers can choose to pay the full amount at once or set up a repayment plan. They can also log in to the myEDD online portal for easy repayment options.
Federal workers who have returned to work full-time should simply stop certifying for benefits — their unemployment claim will automatically become inactive.
Workers who have returned to part-time work may still qualify for partial unemployment benefits. To continue receiving benefits, they must:
- Keep certifying for benefits every two weeks.
- Report all work hours and gross wages (before taxes or other withholdings) each week.
How California’s Labor Market Data Are Produced
Each month, EDD and the BLS jointly produce California’s official estimates of employment and unemployment using two main surveys:
- Establishment Survey: A sample of California businesses provides information used to estimate the total number of nonfarm jobs in the economy, also known as the Current Employment Statistics program.
- Household Survey: A sample of Californians provides data to estimate how many people are employed or unemployed and their demographic characteristics, also known as the Current Population Survey.
The BLS conducts these surveys and works closely with EDD’s Labor Market Information (LMI) experts to incorporate state-level insights. California’s LMI experts provide state-level economic context such as unemployment claim counts, state hiring data, seasonal factors, strikes, disasters, and other state-specific economic factors. EDD also develops the estimates for smaller counties across the state.
Accessing Labor Market Resources
For more information about how labor market data are developed and maintained, visit the following EDD resources: