Fresno stood out among the largest counties in California when it comes to employment growth in the fourth quarter of 2022.

With growth of 2.9%, Fresno County saw the largest year-over increase in employment from December 2021 to December 2022, according to new data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Employment rose in 27 of California’s 28 largest counties in that period, but none as much as Fresno. Santa Clara County was close at 2.8%, followed by Sacramento at 2.6% and Tulare County at 2.6%

Looking at wage growth in that period at the height of the pandemic, among the 28 large California counties, 21 reported average weekly wage losses. Fresno and Tulare counties bucked that trend with 0% recorded wage losses.

San Francisco County saw the largest drop in wages with 22.6%. Merced saw the largest increase of the Golden State’s large counties with 1.6% weekly wage growth.

“The data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics highlights the positive growth in wages and jobs in Fresno County, providing a bright spot for the entire state of California,” stated County Administrative Officer Paul Nerland.