California unemployment rate dips to 10.9%; state loses 4,200 jobs A job seeker holds a job application during a San Francisco job fair in March. The California unemployment rate dipped to 10.9% in April. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images / May 18, 2012 By Ricardo Lopez May 18, 2012, 7:55 a.m. California employers trimmed their April payrolls by 4,200 jobs last month, snapping a string of eight straight months of employment growth. The unemployment rate declined last month to 10.9% from 11% in March, but only because discouraged workers left the labor force, according to figures released Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. California lost jobs across several sectors including construction, education, leisure and hospitality and government, while the professional and business services sector added jobs. California's unemployment rate remains well above the national rate of 8.1%. Only two states have higher unemployment rates than California: Nevada (11.7%) and Rhode Island (11.2%). Facebook's Zuckerberg opens Wall Street by ringing Nasdaq bell Recent spike in gas prices may mean record pain on Memorial Day